Determining Parameters for Wood Attenuation Coefficient Estimation

Abstract

Medical radiation shielding assessment is made possible by accurate estimation of attenuation coefficient of shielding materials employed. This research aims to determine the parameters which correctly estimate the attenuation of woods which are non- hazardous and readily afford as shielding materials. In this study, a total of five types of woods, namely, African Balsam, Gmelina, Tectona Grandis, Ironwood and Mahogany were collected from Agan forest located along Makurdi- Lafia Road, Makurdi, north central Nigeria. The wood samples were oven-dried with temperature range of 90 - 120 to remove water and the attenuation coefficient determining parameters estimated. Results in this finding indicate that wood quality can be based on the gamma ray attenuation characteristics for which Mahogany recorded the highest value of 0.4158cm^-1and 1.6518cm^-1, and followed by sampled Iron Wood which has a value of 0.4084cm^-1and 1.6354 cm^-1 respectively. The linear attenuation coefficient of the wood species in this research was found to depend on the energy of incident photons, the density and nature of the wood species. Mahogany with average density of0.776g/cm³ has the highest attenuation coefficient while African Balsam with average density of 0.43g/cm³ has the lowest attenuation coefficient.