Structural Characterization and Properties Study of Some Glasses for Radiation Safety Applications

Nowadays, mankind becomes under radiological attack due lo the wide-spread presence of reactors here and there over the world for producing energy as well as the wide-spread uses of radioactive sources in various fields of the daily life. Also, after various periods, all these source as well as the working reactor and a nuclear facility leaves many useless radioactive wastes. These radioactive wastes are still of dangerous effect and still attack all peoples. Therefore these problems become now a matter of interest. The international Atomic Energy Agency( IAEA in Vienna), gave these problems special importance, and it was generalized to all payes undergoing to the comprehensive safeguarded agreement that these problems must be taken into consideration in order to keep a safe environment for mankind. However it is of interest now to search for good shielding materials from the harmful rays as well as to search for other materials that can be used for encapsulating the radioactive wastes before disposal under ground. However, various oxide glasses containing heavy metal cations, have been manufactured and used as shields from different harmful rays as well as for radioactive waste encapsulation. In this study, a glass system obeying the following molecular compositions (65-x)% P₂O₅+ 15% Fe₂O₃ + 20% Na₂O+ x Ba O Where x = 0, 2.5, 5, 7.5, 10, 12.5, 15 , 20 and 25 mol %, has been prepared. The glass batch's were melted in porcelain crucibles at 1100 °C for 2 hr and were then casted on a copper plate in air, and they were then annealed at 350 °C, over night