Radiation shielding properties of modified concrete mixes and their suitability in dry storage cask

Radiation shielding properties of 8 concrete mixes were studied in detail. The concrete mixes included 4 coarse aggregate types; dolomite, barite, ilmenite, and celestite, and 2 cementing material content. Important parameters accounted for in this study include: Mass attenuation coefficient that was calculated using WinXCom program then linear attenuation coefficient, half value layer, tenth value layer, and mean free path were deduced; Effective atomic number was calculated using Auto-Zeff software; Exposure build-up factor was calculated using the Geometric Progression approximation method up to 40 mean free path using Phy-X/PSD Software; Fast neutrons macroscopic effective removal cross-section and thermal neutron macroscopic absorption cross-section were calculated using MRCsC and JANIS-4 programs, respectively. Subsequently, the mixes were assessed for use in a dry storage cask using OpenMC code. The results showed that concrete mixes containing barite and celestite were the best in attenuating gamma rays emitted in narrow and broad beam situations.