Development of Sustainable Radiation-Shielding Blend Using Natural Rubber/NBR, and Bismuth Filler

Ola Aziz, E. Salama (), Doaa E. El-Nashar and Assem Bakry
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Ola Aziz: Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Ain Shams University, Cairo 11566, Egypt
E. Salama: Basic Science Department, Faculty of Engineering, The British University in Egypt-BUE, El Sherouk City 11837, Egypt
Doaa E. El-Nashar: Department of Polymers and Pigments, National Research Centre, Giza 12622, Egypt
Assem Bakry: Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Ain Shams University, Cairo 11566, Egypt

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 12, 1-18

Abstract: This research entailed the production of composite materials through the combination of natural rubber and acrylonitrile butadiene rubber, along with nano-silica-loaded bismuth (III) oxide, in varying concentrations ranging from 0 to 45 parts per hundred parts of rubber (phr). The gamma attenuation properties of the composites at different concentrations of Bi 2 O 3 were measured. Additionally, the mechanical properties of the resulting composites, including hardness, tensile strength, and elongation, were tested. The composites with a concentration of 20 phr exhibited the highest tensile strength and elongation at break, followed by a subsequent decrease as the concentration of Bi 2 O 3 increased. The gamma mass-attenuation coefficient of the composites increased as the Bi 2 O 3 concentration increased from 0 to 45 phr, with values ranging from 0.083 to 0.090 cm 2 /g at 0.662 MeV. Moreover, the fast neutron mass removal cross-sections ranged from 0.092 to 0.072 cm 2 /g, corresponding to the variation of Bi 2 O 3 concentration from 0–45 phr are also determined. Various parameters related to gamma-ray shielding, including the half-value layer, exposure build-up factor (EBF) up to 40 mean free path (mfp) penetration depth, and effective atomic number (Z eff ) are also included. The radiation-induced aging of the prepared blend is tested by measuring the effect of radiation exposure on its shielding capability via its porosity change. The obtained results indicated that the prepared composites could be used for several radiation-protection applications.

Keywords: NBR; natural rubber; bismuth; gamma shielding; buildup factor; neutron removal cross-section (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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