DOI: 10.30931/jetas.1298557 ISSN: 2548-0391

IONIZING RADIATION SHIELDING PROPERTIES OF TANTALUM PENTOXIDE DOPED HIGH-DENSITY POLYETHYLENE COMPOSITES: A THEORETICAL STUDY

Yaşar KARABUL
  • Materials Science (miscellaneous)
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The increase in the usage of radiation in many areas requires the development of lead-free new generation radiation shielding materials. Due to their low weight and flexibility, polymer composites are considered as environmentally friendly alternative materials that can be used instead of toxic and high-weight lead for radiation shielding. From this point of view, the present study has focused on examining the radiation shielding performance of tantalum pentoxide doped high-density polyethylene (HDPE/Ta2O5) composites (including 5, 10, and 20 wt% Ta2O5) by using WinXCom software and MCNP6 simulation. The mass attenuation coefficient (MAC) of the composites was calculated within the 81 keV-1332 keV photon range by utilizing WinXCom software and MCNP6 code. The other shielding parameters such as Half Value Layer (HVL), effective atomic number (Zeff), and effective electron density (Neff) have been determined. In the light of data, it has been revealed that gradual increase in Ta2O5 doping while improving the MAC coefficients, Zeff, and Neff parameters, decreasing the HVL length of HDPE considerably. Additionally, the parameters obtained by WinXCom and MCNP6 simulation are in good agreement. the. Ultimately, the best ionizing shielding performance among the composites has been determined for HDPE/20% Ta2O5 composite against 81 keV photons.

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