Composite materials may be subjected to extreme conditions where the surface is exposed to high-energy photon radiation, which can significantly change material properties and even cause severe damage and destruction. While the interaction of high-energy photons with homogeneous materials has been well studied, it is still a challenge to model the photon transport in composite materials. In this study, we propose a Monte Carlo model to simulate the photon transport in structurally and chemically heterogeneous materials. The model is first verified and validated by comparison with an existing open-source software(Geant4) through a case study of calculating the photon energy deposition curve in aluminum. It is then applied to studying the photon energy deposition in carbon fiber reinforced polymer(CFRP), of which the simulation results show a highly heterogeneous pattern of energy deposition in carbon fibers and epoxy resins. We also calculate the energy deposition in CFRP by homogenizing the composite as a single-phase material and compare the results with those of the full-field Monte Carlo simulations. It is found that energy deposition calculation based on homogenization can result in significant errors when the photon energy is high and is thus only suitable for low-energy photon radiation. As a final demonstration, we apply the model to calculating the energy deposition of photons in composite metal foam(CMF). The simulation results show that most of the photon energy is absorbed by the sphere wall and only a small fraction is deposited in the matrix, leading to greatly improved shielding performance of CMF as compared to that of pure matrix metals. We believe that this model has the potential to be applied to composite materials design where the structural and material heterogeneity can be optimized for improved performance under radiation environment.
Yang Ping, Zhao Pengyang
. Modeling Photon Transport in Composite Materials Using Monte Carlo Algorithm[J]. Journal of Shanghai Jiaotong University(Science), 2026
, 31(4)
: 960
-969
.
DOI: 10.1007/s12204-024-2762-8
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