Abstract In this paper, the radiation shielding properties of borate-tellurite-germanate glasses were experimentally studied. The four compositions (BTGMCe1–BTGMCe4) involving the use of different amounts of CeO 2 . The impact of the CeO 2 additions on gamma-ray shielding properties was evaluated using a NaI(Tl) scintillation detector and gamma-ray sources of 137 Cs (662 keV) and 60 Co (1,173 and 1,332 keV). The results showed that the gamma-ray attenuation properties of the glasses were clearly dependent on composition, wherein the linear attenuation coefficient (LAC) of each composition increased by 16–29 % across the energies investigated, while half-value layer (HVL) and mean-free path (MFP) decreased correspondingly, indicating stronger interaction with photons. Furthermore, the results indicated that the glass with a 10 % CeO 2 addition (BTGMCe4) had the lowest transmission factor (16.5 % @ 0.662 MeV and 4.6 cm thickness) and highest radiation protective efficiency (83.5 %) when compared to other state-of-the-art compositions and lead-containing glasses tested based on mass attenuation coefficients (MAC). It is essential to highlight that the results of comparative studies established that BTGMCe4 glass composition as a viable potential substitute for lead oxide-based glass, thus providing preliminary evidence of a viable ecologically safe method for attenuating low and mid-level energy gamma radiation with our developed glasses have high potential for use in radiation protective applications in both medical and industrial fields.
Kaky et al. (Fri,) studied this question.