Effect of BaO-TiO₂ compositional variation on radiation shielding properties of borate-based glasses: A computational...

In this study, the gamma-ray attenuation properties of five borate glass samples with the composition B₂O₃-Al₂O₃-NaF-BaO-TiO₂ were investigated using computational and simulation-based approaches. The calculations were performed over the energy range of 15 keV-15 MeV. The mass attenuation coefficient (MAC) values were obtained using XCOM, EpiXS, and PHITS, and the good agreement observed among these methods supports the reliability of the results. The linear attenuation coefficient (LAC), half-value layer (HVL), tenth-value layer (TVL), mean free path (MFP), and effective atomic number (Z_eff) were calculated using the EpiXS code. The results indicate that MAC values are higher at low photon energies and tend to decrease with increasing energy. An increase in BaO content accompanied by a decrease in TiO₂ content leads to an increase in Z_eff values, while HVL, TVL, and MFP values decrease, suggesting a potential improvement in attenuation performance with compositional modification. Overall, the samples exhibit a trend of BBaTi4 > BBaTi3 > BBaTi2 > BBaTi1 > BBaTi0 in terms of shielding performance. However, the differences among the samples are more pronounced at low photon energies and become less significant at intermediate and high energies. Comparisons with the literature suggest that the BBaTi4 sample shows relatively more favorable shielding parameters within the investigated series and may provide gamma attenuation properties comparable to some previously reported glass systems. These findings indicate that the investigated BBaTi glass system may be considered a promising candidate for radiation shielding applications.