Computation of the mass attenuation coefficient of polymeric materials at specific gamma photon energies

The gamma ray mass attenuation coefficients of ten synthetic polymeric materials, namely, polyethylene (PE), polystyrene (PS), polycarbonate (PC), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), Polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP), Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), Polypropylene (PP) and Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) have been calculated using second order polynomial equation and logarithmic interpolation formula at selected gamma photon energies, in the energy range starting from 14.4 keV up to 1332 keV. It is important to note that second order polynomial equation fits very well with NIST data for all the polymeric materials considered here, for gamma photon energies ranging from 300 keV up to 2000 keV. Third order polynomial fitting is best suited for lower gamma photon energies (from 10 keV up to 200 keV). - Highlights: • Polynomial fitting method and Logarithmic interpolation are used to compute gamma attenuation coefficient at specific energies. • Ten commonly used synthetic polymers (PE, PS, PC, PVA, PVC, PET, PVP, PTFE, PP and PMMA) were considered for this study. • The determination of mass attenuation coefficient of polymers finds application in radiation shielding and dosimetry.