Preparation and properties characterization of a novel soft robots partially made of silicone/W-based composites for gamma ray shielding

Due to the inevitable harmful effects of radiation when conducting reactor repair, the robots made of rigid materials have been developed to replace human engineers. Anti-irradiation reinforcement of electronic components is a key issue for robots operating in a radioactive environment. A pneumatic-actuator soft robot was initially proposed for use in this study, due to the advantages of using fewer electronic components that require shielding from gamma rays. This paper presents a novel gamma ray radiation-resistant deformable material for the manufacture of soft robots. Here, the robot partially made of the silicone/W-based composites has the advantages of flexibility and gamma ray shielding property, which provide a novel solution for the collection of the radioactive objects and the detection of the radioactive environmental parameters, such as the temperature. The gamma ray attenuation and tensile elongation properties of the silicone/W and silicone/W/Bi₂O₃ composites were evaluated, and the surface morphology and lattice structures of the samples with the best radiation attenuation were investigated and analysed. The gamma ray shielding was experimentally assessed by using a⁶⁰Co radioisotope. The test results demonstrated that the gamma transmittance of the silicone/W-based composite reached 0.64452, which was a decrease of approximately 30.0% when compared to pure silicone.