Influence of low copper oxide additives on B₂O₃-Li₂O-Na₂O-CaO-SrO-As₂O₃ glasses: a physical, structural, and radiological study

This study examines the impact of adding copper oxide to glasses of the composition B₂O₃-Li₂O-Na₂O-CaO-SrO-As₂O_3-XCuO, which are referred to as BLNCASCu-X glasses. The weight percentages of copper oxide used are 0, 0.25, 0.75, and 1 wt.%. The BLNCASCu-X glass was analyzed using Fourier transforms infrared (FT-IR), Ramman, and X-ray diffraction (X-R-D). Additionally, the physical assets of the glass were examined. Adding CuO resulted in a linear increase in the density of the glasses, from 2.8067 to 2.8340 g.cm⁻³. Simultaneously, the molar volume of the glasses decreased from 18.6317 to 24.9974 cm³ mol⁻¹. The density (ρ) exhibited a progressive increase from 3.492 to 3.901 g.cm⁻³, whereas the molar volume (V_m) experienced a drop from 22.311 to 21.216 cm³.mol⁻¹ as the CuO content grew from 0 to 1 wt.%. The radiation shielding properties of the samples were determined experimentally using an HPGe detector at the γ-energies: 0.661 to 1.332 MeVs. The radiation shielding assets of the examined BLNCASCu-X glasses (e.g., the linear attenuation (μ), half value layer (H_1/2), etc.) were evaluated using the MC Monte Carlo simulation algorithm and Phy-X software. The results showed an increase in the content of CuO in BLNCASCu-X glasses from 0 to 1 wt. % had a beneficial impact on their radiation characteristics. The linear attenuation (μ) exhibited an ascending trend in the following order: BLNCASCu-0 < BLNCASCu-0.25 < BLNCASCu-0.75 < BLNCASCu-1. The fast neutron removal cross-section values, denoted as Σ_R, were determined and demonstrated a consistent rise with increasing part densities of copper and oxygen in the BLNCASCu-X glass systems. It is generally believed that in nuclear applications, the absorption of neutrons and photons is enhanced when CuO is added to B₂O₃-Li₂O-Na₂O-CaO-SrO-As₂O₃ glasses.