Demonstration of Optical and Attenuation Characterizations in Zirconium/Barium Borate Glass as Radiation Shielding

ABSTRACT Four glass structures with the nominal composition (BaO)55 + (B ₂ O ₃ )(40− x ) + (Li ₂ O)5 + (ZrO ₂ ) x were produced via melt‐quenching. Zirconium oxide at concentrations from 0 to 5 wt% was tested for radiation shielding. The densities of the generated glasses varied from 3.5261 to 3.9998 g/cm ³ with the substitution of ZrO ₂ , which is crucial for assessing radiation shielding characteristics that rose with the elevated concentration of ZrO ₂ . The glass samples’ FTIR and Raman spectra show a borate glass network and zirconium oxide inclusion, with vibrational bands that show the alternation in the [BO ₃ ]/[BO ₄ ] ratio and increasing polymerization after adding ZrO ₂ . Increased ZrO ₂ concentration enhances network connection by forming BO ₄ units and Zr–O bonds. UV analyses clarified optical and physical properties. An increase in absorbance intensity may indicate Zr ^{4 +} ion‐related defect states or scattering effects. The energy gap decreases from 3.095 eV at 0% ZrO ₂ to 2.924 eV at 5% ZrO ₂ . Phy‐X/PSD was used to study the radiation shielding of barium borate glasses with zirconium oxide. This approach was used to characterize photon energy‐related linear attenuation coefficients, half‐value layers, tenth‐value layers, and effective conductivity parameters. The results demonstrate that the BBZr5 sample, containing 5 wt% of ZrO ₂ , will be the most effective for radiation shielding. ZrO ₂ improved the glass's radiation shielding by increasing the linear attenuation coefficient.