Radiation Transmission of Some Gypsum Concretes for 511, 835 and 1275 keV Gamma Rays

Although gypsum is one of synthetic building materials, nowadays it is used as interior coating of walls and ceilings of buildings. Thus, measurement of its radiation shielding properties is vital. The gamma attenuation coefficients of gypsum concretes, produced using different rates of boron, have been measured at gamma energies of 511, 835 and 1275 keV. The measured results have been compared with the results of calculation, which has been done using XCOM computer code. The obtained results have also been compared with the normal type of gypsum concrete, in order to see the effect of boron on the radiation shielding properties

Natural Radioactivity Measurements and Radiation Dose Estimation in Some Sedimentary Rock Samples in Turkey

The natural radioactivity existed since creation of the universe due to the long life time of some radionuclides. This natural radioactivity is caused by γ-radiation originating from the uranium and thorium series and 40K. In this study, the gamma radiation has been measured to determine natural radioactivity of 238U, 232Th, and 40K in collected sedimentary rock samples in different places of Turkey. The measurements have been performed using γ-ray spectrometer containing NaI(Tl) detector and multichannel analyser (MCA). Absorbed dose rate (D), annual effective dose (AED), radium equivalent activities (Raeq), external hazard index (Hex), and internal hazard index (Hin) associated with the natural radionuclide were calculated to assess the radiation hazard of the natural radioactivity in the sedimentary rock samples. The average values of absorbed dose rate in air (D), annual effective dose (AED), radium equivalent activity (Raeq), external hazard index (Hex), and internal hazard index (Hin) were calculated and these were 45.425 nGy/h, 0.056 mSv/y, 99.014 Bq/kg, 0.267, and 0.361, respectively

Determination of ⁴⁰K Concentration in Gravel Samples from Konyaalt i Beach, Antalya

Terrestrial radioactivity is caused by the radioactive elements, located in various amounts in soil and rocks. The concentration of radioactive elements varies with the geographical and geological structure of the region and with the mineralogical composition of soil and rock. In this study, ⁴⁰K activity concentrations in gravel samples, collected from Konyaaltı Beach, were measured. The measurement was performed using gamma ray spectrometery at gamma spectrometry laboratory of Süleyman Demirel University

Determination of Radiation Attenuation Coefficients of Concretes in Different Densities

The density of the concrete is important parameter for different properties. Using different types and rates of aggregates cause different densities of the concretes. Radiation shielding properties can be varied with the density and it is important to obtain optimum density for this purpose. In this study radiation attenuation coefficients were measured by comparison of five different densities of concrete that called lightweight, semi-lightweight, ordinary and semi-heavyweight and heavyweight. For this purpose concretes were produced with suitable aggregate in laboratory conditions and determined some physical and mechanical properties. The total linear attenuation coefficient measurements have been obtained by a collimated beam of gamma ray from sources ^{60}Co

Radioactivity Measurement on Dental Resin Composites

Radioactivity is mainly due to natural ones from earth and also from outside of the atmosphere so-called cosmic radiation. Although radiation sources and their dose effect on humans are known, there is still some conflict on their health effect especially on dental restoration. The limited data for radioactive dental materials and their potential risks for patient makes those materials interesting to be investigated. For this purposes, uranium, thorium and potassium activity have been measured in some dental restorative materials, such as resin composites containing silica and zirconia particles as filler loading, using gamma spectrometer system with NaI(Tl) detector

Investigation of Buildup Factor in Gamma-Ray Measurement

Gamma ray measurement is an important issue in nuclear technology, since it is widely used in industry, medicine, agriculture, education research, and some military applications. Gamma ray is also needed to build radiation protection, which is very useful for human health. When gamma radiation penetrates through shielding material, it generates two radiation components within or beyond the shield, namely: the uncollided and the collided photons. Therefore, the buildup factor is an important parameter for gamma ray measurement. Buildup factor is defined as the ratio of the total number of particles at a given point to the number of uncollided particles, at that same point. In this work, we evaluate the gamma-ray buildup factors for copper (Cu-29), as a function of energy, for 0.511, 0.662, 1.275 MeV, by using cesium and sodium radioactive sources. The results show that the value of energy buildup factor decreases with increasing gamma energy, and increases with increasing thickness. Moreover, it was found that at high energies (1.275 MeV), the absorption buildup factor is at minimum when the energy is at high level. The results also reveal that there is no contribution from the scattering photons to the value of buildup factor, in general, at low intensity levels, when the geometry structure is built well. While for bad geometry, the detector measures intensity, which is greater than that described by the main linear attenuation coefficient, because the scattered photons will be detected as well. All in all, in order to get rational results, a well geometry should be used for the future applications

Determination of Radiation Attenuation Coefficients of Concretes in Different Densities

The density of the concrete is important parameter for different properties. Using different types and rates of aggregates cause different densities of the concretes. Radiation shielding properties can be varied with the density and it is important to obtain optimum density for this purpose. In this study radiation attenuation coefficients were measured by comparison of five different densities of concrete that called lightweight, semi-lightweight, ordinary and semi-heavyweight and heavyweight. For this purpose concretes were produced with suitable aggregate in laboratory conditions and determined some physical and mechanical properties. The total linear attenuation coefficient measurements have been obtained by a collimated beam of gamma ray from sources ^{60}Co

Cement Paste as a Radiation Shielding Material

Cement, mainly, natural limestone and clay mixture after being heated at high temperature is obtained by milling and it is defined as a hydraulic binder material. Especially, cement is used in production concrete. The photon attenuation coefficient (μ, $cm^{-1}$) for cement paste has been measured using gamma spectrometer containing NaI(Tl) detector and MCA at 835, 1173, and 1332 keV. Cement paste was prepared with types of Portland cement which is CEM I 52,5 R- and CEN reference sand has been used according to TS EN 196-1 standard. The mass attenuation coefficients have been calculated at photon energies of 1 keV to 100 GeV using XCOM and the obtained results were compared with the measurements at 835, 1173, and 1332 keV

Radiation Shielding Properties of Some Composite Panel

With the discovering atomic nucleus, nuclear science started to be used in different fields and researcher focused on radiation protection as it is dangerous for human cell. Thus radiation physics and materials development becomes one of the important subject in science for this purposes. The developed material should be used for radiation shielding. In this work gamma ray shielding properties of some composite materials produced by polymer have been investigated

Determination of Radiation Shielding Properties of Fabrics using Image Processing Method

It is extremely important to protect the human body from radioactive rays. Protective clothing can be used to absorb radiation because it is preferable to avoid the natural and artificial radiation exposure in our daily lives. There are many different types of fabric, used for clothes. In this study radiation absorbing properties of fabrics, which are widely used in the daily life, such as alpaca-type fabric, cotton fabric, cotton polyester blend fabric, woven dyed fabric and knitted fabric were examined using the image processing method