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Radioactive Decay
Ernest Rutherford
Rutherford investigated this new
property of matter and discovered that,
in the process of emitting radiation,
atoms of one element became atoms of
another element.
Today, we describe the process of an atom of one
element becoming an atom of a different element as
transmutation.
www.epa.gov
Predicting products
Based on the two laws we can predict:
The mass number of particle X must be 218.
Positron Emission
We can use our ability to balance nuclear equations to
predict what will be given off when Potassium-37
undergoes positron emission.
Your turn!
Using the Laws of Conservation of Mass # and Charge,
write balanced nuclear equations for the following
nuclear reactions:
1. Beta decay of Phosphorus-32
2. Alpha decay of U-238
3. Positron decay of Iron-53
4. Decay of Oxygen-17 into Nitrogen-17
5. Decay of Potassium-42 into Calcium-42
6. Decay of Plutonium-239 into Uranium-235
Half-lifes
The rate at which a particular radioisotope decays is
described by its half-life.
The half-life is defined as the time that it takes for one
half of a sample of a radioactive element to decay into
another element.
The half-life of a radioisotope is dependent only on
what the radioisotope is.
Using Table N
Table N indicates that Radium-226 undergoes alpha decay.
Based on this we can write a balanced nuclear equation to
represent this reaction:
Using Half-life
Table N also tells us that Radium-226 has a half-life of 1600
years.
Starting with a 100g
sample, after 1 halflife (or 1600 years),
50g remain.
After another 1600
years, half of the 50g
will remain (25g).
Carbon-14 Dating
The age of objects that were once alive can be determined by
using the C-14 dating test. In this test, scientists determine
how much C-14 is left in a sample and from this determine the
age of the object.
From Table N we can determine that C-14 undergoes
decay:
Uranium-238 Series
The Uranium-238 Decay Series is used to determine the age of rocks.
Parent-daughter Relationship
Two half-lives have gone by while the sample decayed from the
original C-14 concentration to 25% of that concentration.
Based on Table N, the half-life of C-14 is 5730 years, so
Your turn!
On a sheet of paper, answer the following questions from
your textbook. Indicate how you arrived at your answer
and turn in your work for a homework/quiz grade.
Page 670
Questions 34 (a and b), 36, 37, 38, 41, 42.
Page 671
Questions 50, 58, 59
The End
This is the end of the first slide show on
nuclear reactions. You may continue
learning about nuclear reactions by viewing
the second show:
Nuclear Chemistry:
Fission and Fusion