Radioactivity

Chapter 16 Section 1
Objectives:
 Describe how radioactivity was discovered

 Compare alpha, beta, and gamma decay

 Describe the penetrating power of the 3 kinds of nuclear

radiation

 Calculate ages of objects using half-life

 Identify uses of radioactive materials

Science Humor…

 Why did the unstable nucleus use

toothpaste?

 It wanted to prevent decay!

Discovering Radioactivity
 1896, Henri Becquerel, discovered a new area of science

 Becquerel hypothesized that fluorescent minerals give off x-

rays

 His test idea:

 Put a fluorescent mineral on top of a photographic plate
wrapped in paper
 Put it in bright sunlight; developed the plate; saw a strong image
of the mineral
 Henri Becquerel’s test…

https://reich-chemistry.wikispaces.com/file/view/becquerel_plate.jpg
An unexpected result
 Tried the experiment again, but weather was cloudy

 He put the plate in a drawer, and found it still created an

image several days later

 The mineral gave off energy. It passed through the paper and
made an image on the plate.

 Becquerel concluded that the energy came from uranium, an

element in the mineral
 Naming the Unexpected

 Nuclear radiation: high energy particles and rays that are

emitted by the nuclei of some atoms

 Marie Curie, a scientist working with Becquerel, named

the process radioactivity or radioactive decay

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Kinds of Radioactive Decay
 Radioactive decay: an unstable nucleus gives off particles and
energy

 3 kinds:
 Alpha decay

 Beta decay

 Gamma decay
Alpha Decay
 Release of an alpha particle

 Alpha particle is made up of 2 protons and 2 neutrons (same

as the nucleus of a Helium atom)

 Mass number of 4, charge of 2+

 Mass number is the sum of the numbers of protons and

neutrons in the nucleus of an atom
 Alpha Decay

 Many large radioactive nuclei give off alpha particles and

become nuclei of different elements

 Example: Radium-226 gives off alpha particles

http://www.sr.bham.ac.uk/xmm/images/atom/alphadecaysymb_370_94.jpg
Conservation in Decay
 Mass number is conserved
 The sum of the mass numbers of the starting materials is always
equal to the sum of the mass numbers of the products

 Also, charge is conserved

 The sum of the charges of the starting materials is always equal
to the sum of the charges of the products

 Mass number: 226 = 222 + 4

 Charge: (88+) = (86+) + (2+)
Beta Decay
 The release of a beta particle from a nucleus

 A beta particle can be an electron or a positron

 Electron: charge= 1ˉ
 Positron: charge=1⁺

 Electrons and positrons have a mass of almost 0

 The mass number of a beta particle is 0 because it has no protons

or neutrons
Two Types of Beta Decay

 Not all isotopes of an element decay in the same way.

 Isotopes are atoms that have the same number of protons as

other atoms of the same element, but have different numbers
of neutrons

 Example: Carbon-14 and Carbon-11

 Carbon-14
 A neutron breaks down into a proton and an
 The nucleus becomes a nucleus of a different element
(Nitrogen-14)
 Both mass number and charge are conserved

http://www.windows.ucar.edu/physical_science/physics/atom_particle/c14_decay_to_n14_big.jpg
 Carbon-11
 A proton breaks into a positron and a neutron
 The nucleus becomes a nucleus of a different element
(Boron-11)
 Both mass number and charge are conserved

http://www.impcas.ac.cn/usr/wjx/zhonglz/jiangzuo/prc/positron_decay.gif http://www.hcc.mnscu.edu/chem/abomb/Positron_Disc.jpg
Gamma Decay
 Some of the energy given off during alpha and beta decay is
in the form of light with very high energy: gamma rays

 Gamma decay – release of gamma rays from the nucleus

 Happens as the particles in the nucleus shift places

 Gamma rays have no mass or charge

 Therefore, there is no change into another element

 Radioactive Decay

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The Penetrating Power of Radiation
 Difference in penetration is due to their mass and charge
(Alpha, Beta, Gamma particles)

 Effects of radiation on matter:

Atoms that are hit by nuclear radiation can give up
electrons

Chemical bonds between atoms can break

This can cause damage to living and non-living matter

Damage to Living Matter
 Can cause burns

 Radiation sickness: fatigue, loss of appetite, hair loss

 Destruction of blood cells

 Death

 Risk of cancer
Damage to Non-Living Matter
 Metal is weakened

 Metal structures of buildings and nuclear power plants can

become unsafe

 High levels of radiation from the sun can damage spacecraft

Damage

 Gamma rays go through matter easily; cause damage deep

within matter

 Beta particles cause damage closer to the surface

 Alpha particles cause damage very near the surface

 Larger and more massive
 Cause the most damage in an organism
 Finding Date by Decay
 Iceman found in the Italian Alps in 1991

 He was 5,300 years old

 The decay of radioactive carbon was the key!

http://earthpages.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/cfourteen.gif
 Oetzi the Iceman

http://img368.imageshack.us/i/oetzitheicemanglacier19ib9.jpg/#q=iceman%20italian%20alps
Carbon-14 It’s in YOU!
 Carbon atoms are found in all living things

 A portion of those carbon atoms are radioactive carbon-14

atoms

 During life, the percentage of carbon-14 atoms stays the

same (atoms that are decayed are replaced)

 When an organism dies, the carbon-14 is no longer replaced

A Steady Rate of Decay

 Every 5,730 years, half of the carbon-14 in a sample decays

 The rate of decay is constant (temperature, pressure or other

conditions do not affect the rate)

 Half-life: the amount of time it takes one-half of the nuclei of

a radioactive isotope to decay
 Radioactive Decay & Half-Life

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Half-Life continued…
 Original sample

 1 half-life: 50% (½) of the sample has decayed, 50% (½) is

unchanged

 2 half-lives: 75% (¾) of the sample has decayed, 25% (¼) is

unchanged

 3 half-lives: 87.5% (7/8) of the sample has decayed, 12.5%

(1/8) is unchanged
 Examples of Half-Lives

 Table 1 pg. 453 in text

http://science9.files.wordpress.com/2007/02/carbon-14.gif
Determining Age

 Iceman’s age:
 Scientists measured the # of decays in his body each minute
 ½ of the carbon had decayed (5,730 years)

 Carbon can be used to find the age of objects up to 50,000

years old

 To find the age of older things, other elements such as

potassium-40 (1.3 billion years) – used for dinosaur fossils!
Uses of Radioactivity
 Ex: Smoke detectors

 Tracers: radioactive elements whose paths can be followed

through a process or reaction
Radioactivity in Healthcare

 Used to diagnose medical problems

 Short half-lives

 Injected into the patient; followed through the body

 Treat illnesses (cancer)

 Prevent illnesses: sterilization of food products

Quick Quiz

 Compare alpha, beta, and gamma radiation in terms of their

size and mass

 Why is a half-life called a half-life?