Total Mass Attenuation Coefficients, Total Photon Interaction Cross Sections, Effective Atomic Numbers and Effective Electron Densities for Some Construction Materials Available in Turkey

Abstract

In the present work, the buildup factor (B), total mass attenuation coefficients ($\mu /\rho$), total photon interaction cross sections ($\sigma_{a}$), effective atomic numbers ($Z_{{{\text{eff}}}}$) and effective electron densities ($N_{{\text{e}}}$) of different construction materials (strength of 28 daily pressure: 32.5–42.5 and 52.5 MPa Cement, Adobe, Black Cement, Brick, Briquette, Clay, Exterior Paint, Joint Filler, Hardboard, Laminate Flooring, Lime, Marble, MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard), Oil Paint, Plaster Sand, PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride), Satin Plaster, Tile Adhesive, White Cement, Ytong) were measured with energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (EDXRFS) for 59.54 keV energy. Gamma rays of the ²⁴¹Am point source were detected by using a high-resolution Si(Li) detector. The chemical content of these construction materials was determined with wavelength dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (WDXRFS).  Obtained experimental results have been compared with theoretically calculated values of WinXCom and FFAST. It has been observed that the experimental values are generally closer to the FFAST values. It was determined that the values of $\mu /\rho$, $Z_{{{\text{eff}}}}$, $N_{{\text{e}}}$ and $\sigma_{a}$ depend on the chemical content of the construction material. In addition, it was observed that the interaction of Lime with gamma rays was maximum, and gamma-ray interaction with PVC was minimal.