lead doors are doors which are lead-lined. They are a proven method of shielding against radiation and to provide noise cancellation.
Radiation doors must be shielded with the same lead thickness value (or greater) as the partition or wall the door occurs in. Doors must be internally shielded with a single sheet of lead covering full height and width of door.
Lead core doors are much heavier than unprotected doors, and therefore special hardware, framing, and hinge systems need to be considered, due to both weight and shielding requirements. For example pivot or continuous hinges that are specifically designed to carry the weight of lead-lined doors are often used. The door framing systems must also be lead-lined to ensure a complete protective barrier.
Lead-lined doors and completed wall systems will have normal external finishes to match the appearance of unshielded building sections to the extent possible. Wood cores are laminated under hydraulic pressure on each side of the lead. Lead doors are often constructed using a single layer of sheet lead in the center of the door.
While many radiation facilities use lead lined mazes to help contain the radiation emissions, some high energy linear accelerator vaults do not have the available space. These types of installation require a specially constructed steel door with neutron absorbing polyethylene and lead sheet for gamma ray absorption. These very heavy doors (3000 to 15,000 lbs) are fabricated with motorized door operators, special interlock switches and energy absorbing door stops.
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