Cr2O3 effect on the structure, optical, and radiation shielding properties of Na2B4O7–SiO2–CaO–Cr2O3 glasses

65Na2B4O7–25SiO2–(10 − x) CaO–x Cr2O3x = (0 ≤ x ≤ 5 mol.%) glass system was synthesized and optical, structural, and radiation shielding characteristics are examined. The glass density increased as Cr2O3 was added, while the molar volume decreased. FT-IR bands are correlated with the vibrations of BO3 and BO4. Cr3+ appears to convert BO3 into BO4, according to preliminary FT-IR results. Eopt\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$E_{{{\text{opt}}}}$$\end{document} values are in the range of 2.57–3.31 eV. Increases in the Eopt\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$E_{{{\text{opt}}}}$$\end{document} can be linked to density and N4 variation. (Zeq) increased then decreased as the incident photon energy increased with the replacement of CaO by Cr2O3. ∑R\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{wasysym} \usepackage{amsfonts} \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsbsy} \usepackage{mathrsfs} \usepackage{upgreek} \setlength{\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \begin{document}$$\sum R$$\end{document} enhances as the Cr2O3 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.