The plutonium isotope 239Pu is produced as a by-product in nuclear reactors and hence is accumulating in our environment. It is radioactive, decaying with a half-life of 2.41*104 y.(a) How many nuclei of Pu constitute a chemically lethal dose of 2.00 mg? (b) What is the decay rate of this amount?
Radioactive decay
The emission of energy to produce ionizing radiation is known as radioactive decay. Alpha, beta particles, and gamma rays are examples of ionizing radiation that could be released. Radioactive decay happens in radionuclides, which are imbalanced atoms. This periodic table's elements come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Several of these kinds are stable like nitrogen-14, hydrogen-2, and potassium-40, whereas others are not like uranium-238. In nature, one of the most stable phases of an element is usually the most prevalent. Every element, meanwhile, has an unstable state. Unstable variants are radioactive and release ionizing radiation. Certain elements, including uranium, have no stable forms and are constantly radioactive. Radionuclides are elements that release ionizing radiation.
Artificial Radioactivity
The radioactivity can be simply referred to as particle emission from nuclei due to the nuclear instability. There are different types of radiation such as alpha, beta and gamma radiation. Along with these there are different types of decay as well.
The plutonium isotope 239Pu is produced as a by-product in nuclear
reactors and hence is accumulating in our environment. It is radioactive,
decaying with a half-life of 2.41*104 y.(a) How many nuclei
of Pu constitute a chemically lethal dose of 2.00 mg? (b) What is the
decay rate of this amount?
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