Gamma Radiation Shielding Properties of Unsaturated Polyester /bi2o3 Composites: an Experimental, Theoretical and Simulation Approach

Conventional gamma radiation shielding materials, such as lead and lead-based composites are heavy and hazardous to human health and the environment. This particular aspect has prompted research into alternative shielding materials. The key objective of this work is to investigate Bismuth Oxide and unsaturated polyester resin (UPR)-based polymer composite material as a radiation shielding. The investigation used a gamma spectrometer consisting of an HPGe detector and the radioactive point sources 60Co, 133Ba, and 137Cs that have energies ranging from 81 keV to 1332 keV for experimentally evaluating mass attenuation coefficient (MAC). Subsequently, the experimental results for MAC were compared with the corresponding values obtained from WinXCOM and Geant4 simulation. Our findings indicated that the mass attenuation coefficient values of experimentally investigated composites align well with the theoretical and simulated values. In addition, we examined the half-value layer (HVL), tenth-value layer (TVL), mean free path (MFP), and radiation protection efficiency (RPE) parameters. From the study, it can be inferred that lead (Pb) can be replaced by UPR+50 wt% Bi2O3 composite for low-energy gamma-ray shielding applications.