What happens when a radioactive element decays does it remain the same element?

What happens when a radioactive element decays does it remain the same element?

Yes, the decay half-life of a radioactive material can be changed. Radioactive decay happens when an unstable atomic nucleus spontaneously changes to a lower-energy state and spits out a bit of radiation. This process changes the atom to a different element or a different isotope.

What happens when an atom becomes radioactive?

When radioactive atoms decay, they release energy in the form of ionizing radiation (alpha particles, beta particles and/or gamma rays). The energy is called ionizing radiation because it has enough energy to knock tightly bound electrons from an atom’s orbit. This causes the atom to become a charged ion.

How much of a sample of radioisotope remains after one half-life?

Explanation: After 1 half life , clearly HALF of the original isotope remains. And after TWO half-lives, a HALF + HALF of a HALF , i.e. 34 of the original mass has decayed.

What factor determines the type of decay that occurs in a radioisotope?

“The neutron-to-proton ratio in a radioisotope determines the type of decay that occurs. “

Why does an atom undergo radioactive decay?

Every atom seeks to be as stable as possible. In the case of radioactive decay, instability occurs when there is an imbalance in the number of protons and neutrons in the atomic nucleus. If the nucleus of an atom is unstable, eventually it will break apart to lose at least some of the particles that make it unstable.

Why do atoms become radioactive?

Why some elements are radioactive (unstable). When the atoms of an element have extra neutrons or protons it creates extra energy in the nucleus and causes the atom to become unbalanced or unstable. Whether radioactive elements can become stable and if so, how. The unstable nucleus of radioactive atoms emit radiation.

What are radioactive atoms?

Radioactive atoms are atoms, which contain unstable nucleus, and which may undergo radioactive decay. The term radioactive atom is misleading term, since usually only nuclei may undergo decay and changes in electron configuration are only a result of changes in nucleus configuration.

What is radioactive isotopes in rocks?

Radioactive dating is a method of dating rocks and minerals using radioactive isotopes. This method is useful for igneous and metamorphic rocks, which cannot be dated by the stratigraphic correlation method used for sedimentary rocks. Over 300 naturally-occurring isotopes are known.

How is radioactive decay determined?

Radioactive decay involves the spontaneous transformation of one element into another. The only way that this can happen is by changing the number of protons in the nucleus (an element is defined by its number of protons). There are a number of ways that this can happen and when it does, the atom is forever changed.

How much of a radioisotope will remain after 4 half-lives?

n is the number of half-lives. After 4 hours, only 3.75g of our original 60g sample would remain the radioactive isotope Np-240.

What determines the type of decay that will occur in a radioisotope?

What determines the type of decay a radioisotope undergoes? “The neutron-to-proton ratio in a radioisotope determines the type of decay that occurs. ” “Transmutation can occur by radioactive decay or when particles bombard the nucleus of an atom.”

Why do isotopes of the same element have different radioactivity?

Since they still have the same number of protons, all these isotopes of an element have identical chemical behavior. But since they have different numbers of neutrons, these isotopes of the same element may have different radioactivity. An isotope that is radioactive is called a radioisotope orradionuclide.

What is the heaviest element with a stable radioactive decay?

Lead, atomic number 82, is the heaviest element to have any isotopes stable (to the limit of measurement) to radioactive decay. Radioactive decay is seen in all isotopes of all elements of atomic number 83 (bismuth) or greater.

What happens when the number of protons in an atom changes?

When the number of protons changes, an atom of a different chemical element is created. The first decay processes to be discovered were alpha decay, beta decay, and gamma decay. Alpha decay occurs when the nucleus ejects an alpha particle (helium nucleus).

Are there radioactive decay processes that do not result in nuclear transmutation?

By contrast, there are radioactive decay processes that do not result in a nuclear transmutation. The energy of an excited nucleus may be emitted as a gamma ray in a process called gamma decay, or that energy may be lost when the nucleus interacts with an orbital electron causing its ejection from the atom, in a process called internal conversion .