Investigating the Role of Bismuth Oxide and Gadolinium Oxide as an Enhancer of the Gamma Shielding Ability of Polymer Compounds Based on Unsaturated Resin Using the Monte Carlo Simulation Geant4 Tool

The presence of lead as the first radiation shielding with a series of good features such as high density and having some flexibility and a series of inappropriate features such as toxicity, low physical and chemical stability, and high weight, has long made scientists think about alternatives. In this research, the protective properties against gamma radiation of polymer compounds with oxide (gadolinium-bismuth tellurium) (Gd2O3)x (TeO2)(30-x) - (resin)30 - (Bi2O3)40 (which here x is 10, 15, and 20% by weight percent) and (Gd2O3)x-(TeO2)(40-x) (resin)20 – (Bi2O3)40 (where x is 20, 25, and 30 by weight percent) was examined using the Monte Carlo simulation tool Gent4 in the range of 0.015 to 15 MeV. In this study, the quantities related to photon attenuation such as linear attenuation coefficient, mass attenuation coefficient, one-tenth-value layer, half-value layer, effective atomic number, effective electron density, the total atomic cross section, the total electron cross section, and the mean free path as well as the spectrum of secondary particles created according to their type and energy for different levels of incident gamma energy have been evaluated. The mass attenuation coefficient values ​​calculated from Geant4 were compared to the Phy-x results to validate the simulation results. The results showed a good agreement with each other. The agreement between the data revealed that the Geant4 tool was a good method to examin the properties of gamma ray shielding. The obtained results declared that the development of resins with the addition of oxides of transition metals such as gadolinium, tellurium, and bismuth increases the protective against gamma rays.