While the number of protons defines the element e. Stable isotopes do not decay into other elements. In contrast, radioactive isotopes e. The less abundant stable isotope s of an element have one or two additional neutrons than protons, and thus are heavier than the more common stable isotope for those elements. In general, an isotope with an even number of protons is more likely to be stable than an isotope with an odd number of protons.
If you were to survey the known isotopes of all the elements, you would find that most of the stable isotopes have an even number of protons and an even number of neutrons. What have you been asked to do? What information data have you been given? Extract the data from the question: isotope name: uranium What is the relationship between what you know and what you need to find out? Uranium will have no known stable isotopes. Uranium is unstable. Is your answer plausible? Uranium is used as fuel for nuclear reactors so it must be unstable.
The radioactive decay of uranium can be used to date rocks, so uranium is an unstable isotope of uranium. State your solution to the problem of which uranium isotope s are unstable: Uranium is unstable.
Extract the data from the question: isotope name: carbon Isotope Atomic Number Z No. Carbon is the most common isotope of carbon, it is incorporated into living things so it is unlikely to be unstable otherwise it would be continuously damaging cells.
A radioisotope is an isotope of an element that is unstable and undergoes radioactive decay. The energies that are released in nuclear reactions are many orders of magnitude greater than the energies involved in chemical reactions. Unlike chemical reactions, nuclear reactions are not noticeably affected by changes in environmental conditions, such as temperature or pressure.
Carbon, with six protons and six neutrons, is a stable nucleus, meaning that it does not spontaneously emit radioactivity. Carbon, with six protons and eight neutrons, is unstable and naturally radioactive. Among atoms with lower atomic numbers, the ideal ratio of neutrons to protons is approximately A more efficient approach is to artificially manufacture radioisotopes.
This can be done by firing high-speed particles into the nucleus of an atom. When struck, the nucleus may absorb the particle or become unstable and emit a particle. In either case, the number of particles in the nucleus would be altered, creating an isotope. One source of high-speed particles could be a cyclotron. A cyclotron accelerates particles around a circular race track with periodic pushes of an electric field.
The particles gather speed with each push, just as a child swings higher with each push on a swing. When traveling fast enough, the particles are directed off the race track and into the target. A cyclotron works only with charged particles, however. Another source of bullets are the neutrons already shooting about inside a nuclear reactor.
The neutrons normally strike the nuclei of the fuel, making them unstable and causing the nuclei to split fission into two large fragments and two to three "free" neutrons. These free neutrons in turn make additional nuclei unstable, causing further fission.
The result is a chain reaction. Too many neutrons can lead to an uncontrolled chain reaction, releasing too much heat and perhaps causing a "meltdown.
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