Gamma-Ray Protection Properties of Bismuth-Silicate Glasses against Some Diagnostic Nuclear Medicine Radioisotopes: A Comprehensive Study

Ghada ALMisned; Hesham M H Zakaly; Shams A M Issa; Antoaneta Ene; Gokhan Kilic; Omemh Bawazeer; Albandari Almatar; Dalal Shamsi; Elaf Rabaa; Zuhal Sideig; Huseyin O Tekin

doi:10.3390/ma14216668

Gamma-Ray Protection Properties of Bismuth-Silicate Glasses against Some Diagnostic Nuclear Medicine Radioisotopes: A Comprehensive Study

Materials (Basel). 2021 Nov 5;14(21):6668. doi: 10.3390/ma14216668.

Authors

Ghada ALMisned¹, Hesham M H Zakaly^{2

3}, Shams A M Issa^{3

4}, Antoaneta Ene⁵, Gokhan Kilic⁶, Omemh Bawazeer⁷, Albandari Almatar⁸, Dalal Shamsi⁸, Elaf Rabaa⁸, Zuhal Sideig⁸, Huseyin O Tekin^{8

9}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Physics, College of Science, Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh 11671, Saudi Arabia.
² Institute of Physics and Technology, Ural Federal University, 620002 Ekaterinburg, Russia.
³ Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Assiut 71452, Egypt.
⁴ Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk 71451, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ INPOLDE Research Center, Department of Chemistry, Physics and Environment, Faculty of Sciences and Environment, Dunarea de Jos University of Galati, 47 Domneasca Street, 800008 Galati, Romania.
⁶ Department of Physics, Faculty of Science and Letters, Eskisehir Osmangazi University, Eskisehir 26040, Turkey.
⁷ Medical Physics Department, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Umm-Al Qura University, Makkah 24381, Saudi Arabia.
⁸ Medical Diagnostic Imaging Department, College of Health Sciences, University of Sharjah, Sharjah 27272, United Arab Emirates.
⁹ Medical Radiation Research Center (USMERA), Uskudar University, Istanbul 34672, Turkey.

Abstract

This study aimed to perform an investigation for the potential implementation of bismuth silicate glasses as novel shield equipment instead of ordinary shields in nuclear medicine facilities. Accordingly, a group of Bi₂O₃ reinforced silicate glass system were investigated and compared with ordinary shields in terms of their gamma-ray attenuation properties in diagnostic nuclear medicine radioisotope energies emitted from ^99mTc, ¹¹¹In, ⁶⁷Ga, ¹²³I, ¹³¹I, ^81mKr, ²⁰¹Tl, ¹³³Xe. Mass attenuation coefficient (μm) results for glass samples were calculated comparatively with the XCOM program and MCNPX code. The gamma-ray attenuation parameters such as half value layer (HVL), tenth value layer (TVL), mean free path (MFP), effective atomic number (Z_eff) were obtained in the diagnostic gamma ray energy range from 75 to 336 keV. To confirm the attenuation performance of superior sample, obtained results were extensively compared with ordinary shielding materials. According to the results obtained, BISI6 glass sample with the highest Bi₂O₃ additive has an excellent gamma-ray protection.

Keywords: MCNPX code; bismuth silicate glasses; radioisotope energies; shielding parameters.