About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
MS&T25: Materials Science & Technology
|
| Symposium
|
Advanced Characterization of Materials for Nuclear, Radiation, and Extreme Environments VI
|
| Presentation Title |
Gamma Ray Shielding Performance of 3D Printed Polymers |
| Author(s) |
Lucas Clark, Fahima Ouchen, Laura Davidson, Emily M. Heckman, Carrie M. Bartsch, Ahsan Mian |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Lucas Clark |
| Abstract Scope |
Radiation can cause instantaneous and long-term damage to sensitive electronics. Current strategies for protecting electronics from radiation include adding redundant components, using error-tolerant code, or placing a shield around sensitive devices. Typically, radiation shields are made of high density and high atomic weight materials. Adding a shielding layer of lead or depleted uranium, toxic metals commonly used, may be the easiest to implement, but increases weight and cost. This research aims to find alternative materials that can be lightweight, amenable to low cost, rapid deposition processes, and effective at shielding against gamma radiation. Phy-X/PSD software was used to calculate the half value layer and linear attenuation coefficient of several materials at multiple gamma ray energies. The shielding capabilities of additively manufactured polylactic acid (PLA) and polyamide, as well as commercial aluminum and lead sheets, were measured using a Geiger-Müller radiation counter when exposed to a cesium-137 and cobalt-60 source. |