Abstract
65Na
2
B
4
O
7
–25SiO
2
–(10 −
x
) CaO–
x
Cr
2
O
3
x
= (0 ≤
x
≤ 5 mol.%) glass system was synthesized and optical, structural, and radiation shielding characteristics are examined. The glass density increased as Cr
2
O
3
was added, while the molar volume decreased. FT-IR bands are correlated with the vibrations of BO
3
and BO
4
. Cr
3+
appears to convert BO
3
into BO
4
, according to preliminary FT-IR results.
E
opt
values are in the range of 2.57–3.31 eV. Increases in the
E
opt
can be linked to density and
N
4
variation. (
Zeq
) increased then decreased as the incident photon energy increased with the replacement of CaO by Cr
2
O
3
.
∑
R
enhances as the Cr
2
O
3
content of the glasses increases. G 5 is a better absorber of fast neutron when the FNRC of glass samples is compared. For neutron attenuation applications, the glass sample G 5 is the best option.