Investigation of gamma radiation shielding of concrete containing blast furnace slag waste via experimental and calculation methods

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate gamma-ray shielding characteristics of concrete produced from blast furnace slag. The chemical and physical properties of the aggregates including the chemical composition and specific gravity were investigated to evaluate their radiation shielding properties. The samples were prepared with a cement content of 400 kg/m3, a water to cement ratio of 0.4, and fine aggregate of 43% and coarse aggregate ratio of 57%. Blast furnace slag was replaced with sand at 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% by volume to improve the shielding properties. The compressive strengths at 3, 7 and 28 days and the unit weight of the prepared samples were determined. The linear attenuation coefficient was measured and calculated at photon energies of 0.662 MeV, 1.17 MeV and 1.33 MeV. The WinXCom program was employed to calculate the attenuation coefficient from the chemical composition of samples and the results were compared to the measured results. The study results suggest that the use of blast furnace slag is effectively in improving the compressive strength and shielding properties of concrete. The increase of blast furnace slag caused an increase in the linear attenuation from 0.190 cm-1 to 0.210 cm-1 at 0.662 MeV. © 2018 Trans Tech Publications, Switzerland