Photon, electron, proton and alpha particle interaction parameters of different clays

Modern life has made human beings and nature vulnerable to harmful radiations at different levels. This can be a great health hazard of our times. Since there is no probability of dodging the harmful influence, the practical way out is having protective shielding. Lead, the most efficient attenuator in current use has the drawbacks of being heavy, toxic and capable of producing secondary radiations. Other attenuators concrete, glass etc. have similar deficits in use. This is the context of the scientific world’s quest for a perfect shielding material which can provide protection from harmful radiations effectively, economically and environment friendly. This work attempts a computational study on the radiation shielding efficiency of different types of clays, understanding of which would enable its applications for radiation shielding. The presence of high Z elements and the layered structure of clay along with its good thermal stability make it ideal filler for an effective radiation shield. In this work, we have performed a systematic study of the mass attenuation coefficients, effective atomic number and electron density of various clay samples.