Determining the mass attenuation coefficient, effective atomic number, and electron density of raw wood and binderless particleboards of Rhizophora spp. by using Monte Carlo simulation

• Mass attenuation coefficients were calculated using MCNP5 simulation code.
• Validity of the MCNP5 code was examined by comparison with XCOM program.
• Water/tissue equivalency of the investigated Rhizophora spp. samples was evaluated.
• The MCNP5 can be used to determine the attenuation of gamma rays in other material.

Rhizophora   spp. wood has the potential to serve as a solid water or tissue equivalent phantom for photon and electron beam dosimetry. In this study, the effective atomic number (ZeffZeff) and effective electron density (NeffNeff) of raw wood and binderless Rhizophora spp. particleboards in four different particle sizes were determined in the 10–60 keV energy region. The mass attenuation coefficients used in the calculations were obtained using the Monte Carlo N-Particle (MCNP5) simulation code. The MCNP5 calculations of the attenuation parameters for the Rhizophora spp. samples were plotted graphically against photon energy and discussed in terms of their relative differences compared with those of water and breast tissue. Moreover, the validity of the MCNP5 code was examined by comparing the calculated attenuation parameters with the theoretical values obtained by the XCOM program based on the mixture rule. The results indicated that the MCNP5 process can be followed to determine the attenuation of gamma rays with several photon energies in other materials.