Phy-X / PSD: Development of a user friendly online software for calculation of parameters relevant to radiation shielding and dosimetry

A comprehensive and consistent set of formulas is given for calculating the effective atomic number and electron density for all types of materials and for all photon energies greater than 1 keV The formulas are derived from first principles using photon interaction cross sections of the constituent atoms The theory is illustrated by calculations and experiments for molecules of medical and biological interest, glasses for radiation shielding, alloys, minerals and liquids

On the effective atomic number and electron density: A comprehensive set of formulas for all types of materials and energies above 1 keV

Investigation of bismuth borate glass system modified with barium for structural and gamma-ray shielding properties.

Gamma-ray shielding competence of silicate and borate heavy metal oxide glasses has been investigated using linear attenuation coefficients, effective atomic numbers and exposure buildup factors (EBF). The gamma-ray EBF were computed using the Geometric Progression (G-P) fitting method for photon energies from 0.015 to 15 MeV, and for penetration depths up to 40 mean free paths (mfps). The macroscopic effective removal cross-section for fast neutron has been calculated for energy range from 2 to 12 MeV. It is found that bismuth silicate glass has superior shielding properties and is suitable for replacement of lead glasses. The present investigation is very useful for gamma-ray and neutron shielding and design for lead-free shielding glass in radiological engineering.

K. B. Jensen

Papers

WinXCom – a program for calculating x-ray attenuation coefficients