Attenuation properties and radiation protection efficiency of Tb2O3-La2O3-P2O5 glass system

Abstract

Glass systems such as Tb2O3-La2O3-P2O5 (TLP-system) exhibit both transparency of visible light and remarkable attenuation of ionizing radiation. In this research article, the TLP-system was explored for potential shielding application against nuclear radiation in various technological facilities. Monte Carlo method is applied by using Geant4 packages to assess the radiation shielding performance of the TLP-system. The validation of the simulation outcomes is achieved by the theoretical calculations. The obtained findings showed that the maximum attenuation coefficients (MACs) of the TLP-system are observed at 0.284 MeV, while the minimum MACs were noticed at 1.275 MeV. At 0.284 MeV photon energy, TLP-A glass with 5 mol% of Tb2O3 has the maximum effective atomic number (Z(eff)) with worth of 18.3229, whereas the TLP-E glass with 25 mol% Tb2O3 has the maximum Z(eff) with worth of 21.0558. Moreover, the radiation protection efficiency (RPE) values of the TLP-system decrease with photon energy and increment as the Tb2O3 content increases.