Assessment of radiation shielding properties for some concrete mixtures against photon and neutron radiations

Nuclear Analysis Pub Date : 2025-03-01 DOI:10.1016/j.nucana.2025.100152

Brahim EL Azzaoui , Ouadie Kabach , Younes EL Abbari , Mohamed Youssef Messous , Khalid Nabaoui , Rabie Outayad , Yassine EL Lkhadiri , El mahjoub ChAKIR , El Mehdi Alibrahmi

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Abstract

This study evaluates fifteen concrete formulations, including standard and hybrid types such as Barite, Iron-Limonite, and Luminite-Colemanite-Barite, to determine their effectiveness in shielding against photon rays and neutrons. Using computational tools like MCNP, Phy-X, and XCOM, key shielding parameters were analyzed, including the Mass Attenuation Coefficient, Half-Value Layer, Mean Free Path, Fast Neutron Removal Cross Section, and Neutron Transmittance. In photon shielding, Iron-Portland concrete demonstrated superior performance, achieving the lowest Half-Value Layer (HVL) of 2.244 cm at 1.33 MeV, which is 42 % better than Ordinary concrete and 57 % better than Barite concrete. Iron-Limonite also showed strong photon attenuation with a Mean Free Path (MFP) of 3.23 cm at 1.33 MeV. For neutron shielding, Iron-Limonite and Ferro-phosphorus concrete recorded the highest Fast Neutron Removal Cross Section (FNRCS) values, reaching up to 0.146 cm⁻¹, indicating their strong capability to attenuate fast neutrons. Additionally, hybrid concretes like Luminite-Colemanite-Barite provided balanced protection against both photon and neutron radiation. This study highlights the effectiveness of high-density concretes in radiation shielding and underscores the alignment between deterministic and stochastic computational tools used, reinforcing their applicability in enhancing radiation safety.

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某些混凝土混合料对光子和中子辐射屏蔽性能的评价

本研究评估了15种具体配方，包括标准和混合类型，如重晶石、铁-褐铁矿和发光- colemanite -重晶石，以确定其屏蔽光子射线和中子的有效性。利用MCNP、Phy-X和XCOM等计算工具，分析了主要屏蔽参数，包括质量衰减系数、半值层、平均自由程、快中子去除截面和中子透射率。在光子屏蔽方面，铁硅酸盐混凝土表现出优异的性能，在1.33 MeV下实现了2.244 cm的最低半值层（HVL），比普通混凝土高42%，比重晶石混凝土高57%。铁褐铁矿也表现出较强的光子衰减，在1.33 MeV下平均自由程（MFP）为3.23 cm。在屏蔽中子方面，铁-褐铁矿和磷铁混凝土的快中子去除截面（FNRCS）值最高，可达0.146 cm - 1，说明它们对快中子的衰减能力很强。此外，像luminite - colemanite -重晶石这样的混合混凝土提供了对光子和中子辐射的平衡保护。本研究强调了高密度混凝土在辐射屏蔽方面的有效性，并强调了所使用的确定性和随机计算工具之间的一致性，加强了它们在提高辐射安全方面的适用性。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Nuclear Analysis

CiteScore

1.70

自引率

0.00%

发文量