Accessment of the Powder form of Auricularia Fungus' Ability to Absorb Harmful Ionizing Radiations

Lead shielded enclosures are commonly used for protection against ionizing radiations. As an alternative to lead, a relatively lighted weighted and inexpensive substance is the melanin from the melanized fungi. Here, an IOT-based measurement setup was used to prove the ability of the powder form of dried Auricularia fungus to protect against ionizing radiations, including X-ray and alpha radiations. Methodology: A wall made with the powder form of dried auricularia fungus was used as a shielding material against radiations from a high voltage streamer discharge (HVSD). One side of the melanized fungus wall was exposed to the HVSD, while the other side was monitored using a Geiger counter driven by a Arduino firmware. The monitored readings were compared to the measured radiations in the absence of any wall separating the Geiger counter and HVSD. Results: The proposed wall with dry auricularia powder was in general able to attenuate ionizing radiations to some extent, but not until the thickness of the wall reached 6mm. The fungi powder wall with a thickness at or greater than 6mm has noticeably filtered off all the ionizing radiations in excess of 0.3 uSv/h if and only if the Geiger counter was fully shielded with dry auricularia fungi powder. Conclusion: The outcome of this work reinforces the fact that, as an alternative to lead based wall, the melanin from the dried auricularia fungus has an ability to offer protection against ionizing radiations.