Comprehensive investigation of La2O3-modified borate glasses for optical and radiation shielding applications

In this study, a series of borate-based glasses with the composition (70-x) B2O3 + 5ZnO + 5SrO + 5Na2O + 5CaO+ 10BaO+xLa2O3 (x = 0, 2.5, 5 mol%) were synthesized using the conventional melt-quenching technique. Structural analyses confirmed the amorphous nature of all samples, while optical investigations revealed a reduction in the band gap with increasing La2O3 content. Machine learning-assisted density prediction provided an effective pre-synthesis optimization strategy for the borate glass system. Characterizations of the mechanical and physical properties showed that the amount of La was necessary. Gamma-ray attenuation was experimentally evaluated for the glass samples in the energy range of 81-383 keV. At 383 keV, AY52 maintained its advantage with a MAC of 0.1343 cm2/g and a LAC of 0.3794 cm-1, compared to 0.1058 cm2/g and 0.3402 cm-1 for AY50. Moreover, AY52 also exhibited the highest effective atomic number (Zeff) and the lowest buildup factors (EABF and EBF) across the energy range, confirming its enhanced shielding performance compared to AY50 Neutron shielding evaluations revealed modest improvements, with the effective removal cross-section (Sigma R) slightly decreasing from 0.11184 cm-1 (AY50) to 0.10821 cm-1 (AY52), and absorbed neutron dose rates of 0.8344 mu Sv/h (AY52) compared to 0.8352 mu Sv/h (AY50). Overall, the incorporation of La2O3 enhanced the structural stability, photon attenuation capacity, and mechanical strength of the borate glass system, making it a promising lead-free candidate for radiation shielding applications.

Journal

JOURNAL OF ALLOYS AND COMPOUNDS

Year

2026

Volume

1056

ISSN

0925-8388

eISSN

1873-4669

DOI

10.1016/j.jallcom.2026.186435

WoS UID

WOS:001685767600001