Shielding Parameter Estimation of Some Woods

Abstract

Woods are readily available radiation shielding sources which compliment traditional shielding materials such as lead, concrete and steel. For this reason, parameter estimation of incorporated chemical substances in woods to enhance their usability in this regard is paramount. 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 - 120to remove water and the shielding parameter estimated. In this research, Mahogany has the highest radiation shielding capability of 0.4156cm ^-1 and followed by Ironwood of 0.4084cm ^-1 and while African Balsam has poor attenuation coefficient of 0.3909cm ^-1 which is regarded as bad absorber of radiation. The results from this research demonstrate that radiation shielding is enhanced by wood of appreciable thickness. In this finding, the attenuation coefficient has maximum value for 21.73% water content and minimum value for 58.82% water content and as such justifies usability of woods as shielding materials owing to their availability, low cost and non-hazardous nature.