A Comparative Study on X-ray Shielding and Mechanical Properties of Natural Rubber Latex Nanocomposites Containing Bi(2)O(3) or BaSO(4): Experimental and Numerical Determination

This work experimentally determined the X-ray shielding and morphological, density, and tensile properties of sulfur-vulcanized natural rubber latex (SVNRL) nanocomposites containing varying content of nano-Bi(2)O(3) or nano-BaSO(4) from 0 to 200 phr in 100 phr increments, with modified procedures in sample preparation to overcome the insufficient strength of the samples found in other reports. The experimental X-ray shielding results, which were numerically verified using a web-based software package (XCOM), indicated that the overall X-ray attenuation abilities of the SVNRL nanocomposites generally increased with increasing filler content, with the 0.25-mm-thick SVNRL films containing 200 phr of the filler providing the highest overall X-ray shielding properties, as evidenced by the highest values of lead equivalence (Pb(eq)) of 0.0371 mmPb and 0.0326 mmPb in Bi(2)O(3)/SVNRL nanocomposites, and 0.0326 mmPb and 0.0257 mmPb in BaSO(4)/SVNRL nanocomposites, for 60 kV and 100 kV X-rays, respectively. The results also revealed that the addition of either filler increased the tensile modulus at 300% elongation (M300) and density but decreased the tensile strength and the elongation at break of the Bi(2)O(3)/SVNRL and BaSO(4)/SVNRL nanocomposites. In addition, the modified procedures introduced in this work enabled the developed nanocomposites to acquire sufficient mechanical and X-ray shielding properties for potential use as medical X-ray protective gloves, with the recommended content of Bi(2)O(3) and BaSO(4) being in the range of 95–140 phr and 105–120 phr, respectively (in accordance with the requirements outlined in ASTM D3578-19 and the value of Pb(eq) being greater than 0.02 mmPb). Consequently, based on the overall outcomes of this work, the developed Bi(2)O(3)/SVNRL and BaSO(4)/SVNRL nanocomposites show great potential for effective application in medical X-ray protective gloves, while the modified procedures could possibly be adopted for large-scale production.