Interpretation:
To calculate the age of the charcoal BP
Concept Introduction:
Half-life is defined as the time taken for a radioactive substance to decay to half of its original amount.
When two disintegration rates of radioactive substance are given, one of dead substance ( whose age has to be found out) and the one of living substance, then the ratio of disintegration rate of dead : disintegration rate of living gives the fraction of the substance remaining.
This fraction can be used to calculate how many half-lives have elapsed from the formula:
This n when multiplied by the half life provides the age of the substance.
Want to see the full answer?
Check out a sample textbook solutionChapter 19 Solutions
Chemistry, Books a la Carte Plus Mastering Chemistry with eText -- Access Card Package (7th Edition)
- ChemistryChemistryISBN:9781305957404Author:Steven S. Zumdahl, Susan A. Zumdahl, Donald J. DeCostePublisher:Cengage LearningChemistryChemistryISBN:9781259911156Author:Raymond Chang Dr., Jason Overby ProfessorPublisher:McGraw-Hill EducationPrinciples of Instrumental AnalysisChemistryISBN:9781305577213Author:Douglas A. Skoog, F. James Holler, Stanley R. CrouchPublisher:Cengage Learning
- Organic ChemistryChemistryISBN:9780078021558Author:Janice Gorzynski Smith Dr.Publisher:McGraw-Hill EducationChemistry: Principles and ReactionsChemistryISBN:9781305079373Author:William L. Masterton, Cecile N. HurleyPublisher:Cengage LearningElementary Principles of Chemical Processes, Bind...ChemistryISBN:9781118431221Author:Richard M. Felder, Ronald W. Rousseau, Lisa G. BullardPublisher:WILEY