Investigation of X-Ray Shielding Properties of Concretes Made with Cassava Flour, Sawdust and Charcoal

Authors

Keywords:

Cassava flour, Sawdust, Charcoal, Linear attenuation, Mass attenuation, Half value thickness

Abstract

In this study, we fabricated concretes with cassava flour, sawdust and charcoal collected from Baissa, Kurmi Local Government Area, Taraba State, Nigeria. These composites were investigated on their abilities to shield x-ray reference qualities; 40 kV, 80 kV, and 120 kV at the radiology department of Jos University Teaching Hospital, Jos, Plateau State Nigeria, using a RAD 12 X-ray machine. The incident and the transmitted radiation dose were used to estimate the linear attenuation, mass attenuation and half value thickness of each composite shield. The transmitted photon intensities at 80 kVp and 120 kVp were then compared with the densities of the various sample blocks to investigate the effect of density on their shielding abilities. Pearson Correlation revealed that densities were negatively related to the transmitted photon intensities at 80 kVp and 120 kVp, with coefficients of [r(10) = -.589,p = .05] and [r(10) = -.925,p =.01] respectively. However, a high density obtained in the charcoal composite and a low mechanical strength observed in the cassava composite made the two aggregates unfit for x-ray shielding purposes where density is an important factor to be considered.  The average densities and half value thickness (HVT) of the sawdust composite were compared with the densities and HVT of Lead and Concrete. A scatter plot analysis was used to generate model equations and estimate the Lead and concrete equivalent densities. The results show that lead shields can be replaced with the sawdust composite to shield against 80 kVp and 120 kVp x-ray sources at reduced densities of 66.5% and 52.5% respectively. Concrete shields can also be replaced with the sawdust composite in shielding against 80 kVp and 120 kVp x-ray sources at a reduced density of 7.2% and 4.94% respectively. This is a strong indication that sawdust composite can be very efficient in x-ray shielding applications, such as in mobile x-ray sources.

Dimensions

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Published

2025-09-14

How to Cite

Investigation of X-Ray Shielding Properties of Concretes Made with Cassava Flour, Sawdust and Charcoal. (2025). Nigerian Journal of Applied Physics, 1(1), 57-64. https://doi.org/10.62292/njap-v1i1-2025-2

Issue

Vol. 1 No. 1 (2025): Nigerian Journal of Applied Physics - Vol. 1 No. 1

Section

Articles
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How to Cite

Investigation of X-Ray Shielding Properties of Concretes Made with Cassava Flour, Sawdust and Charcoal. (2025). Nigerian Journal of Applied Physics, 1(1), 57-64. https://doi.org/10.62292/njap-v1i1-2025-2

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