For example, approximately 36% of bismuth-212 decays, through alpha-emission, to thallium-208 while approximately 64% of bismuth-212 decays, through beta-emission, to polonium-212. Both thallium-208 and polonium-212 are radioactive daughter products of bismuth-212, and both decay directly to stable lead-208. Associated hazard warning signs
Write the nuclear equation that represents the radioactive decay of polonium-209 by alpha particle emission and identify the daughter isotope. The second major type of radioactive emission is called a beta particle A type of radioactive emission that is equivalent to an electron. , symbolized by the Greek letter β.
It is a product of the radioactive decay of natural uranium (U-238). Po-210 emits alpha radiation. It decays quickly, with a half-life of about 140 days, thus only 1 percent of its radiation remains after about two and a-half years, before turning into a stable lead isotope. Where do you find Po-210? #A_0# - the initial quantity of the substance that will undergo decay; #t_("1/2")# - the half-life of the decaying quantity. So, if a problem asks you to calculate an element's half-life, it must provide information about the initial mass, the quantity left after radioactive decay, and the time it took that sample to reach its post-decay value. 1. The half-life of polonium-210 is 138.4 days. How many mg of polonium-210 remain after 415.2 days if you start with 2mg of the isotope? 2. The half-life of radon-222 is 3.824 days. After what time will ¼ of a given amount of radon-222 remain? VI. Nuclear Fission and Fusion (c) An atom of the isotope radon-222 emits an alpha particle and decays into an atom of polonium. An alpha particle is the same as a helium nucleus. The symbol below represents an alpha particle. (i) How many protons and how many neutrons are there in an alpha particle? Number of protons = _____ Number of neutrons = _____ (2) (2)
Decay Modes; α: Alpha decay is the emittance of alpha particles which are 4 He nuclei. Thus the atomic number of the daughter nuclide is lower by two and the mass number is lower by four. β − Beta or electron decay for neutron-rich nuclides is the emittance of an electron (and an anti-neutrino) as a neutron decays to a proton.