Table of Contents
Why does uranium-238 alpha decay?
Uranium-238 decays by alpha emission into thorium-234, which itself decays by beta emission to protactinium-234, which decays by beta emission to uranium-234, and so on. The various decay products, (sometimes referred to as “progeny” or “daughters”) form a series starting at uranium-238.
Why does U 238 not undergo fission?
U- 238 is a fissionable isotope, meaning that it can undergo nuclear fission, but the neutrons fired at it would need much more energy in order for fission to take place. because of the large amount of energy needed, U- 238 will not normally undergo fission in a nuclear reactor.
What happens when uranium-238 decays by alpha emission?
A nucleus of uranium 238 decays by alpha emission to form a daughter nucleus, thorium 234. This thorium in turn transforms into protactinium 234, and then undergoes beta-negative decay to produce uranium 234. Any such decay chain is only stopped by the formation of a stable nucleus.
Does uranium undergo alpha or beta decay?
Carbon-14, used in carbon dating, decays by beta emission. Uranium-238 decays by alpha emission.
What is the decay of uranium 238?
Uranium-238 decays by alpha emission with a half-life of (4.4683±0.0048)×109 yr (Jaffey et al., 1971) to 234Th, which in turn decays (half-life=24.1 d) by beta emission to 234Pa, which decays (half-life=6.7 h) by beta emission to 234U, which decays (half-life=245,250±490 yr; Cheng et al., 2000) by alpha emission to 230 …
Why only Uranium is used in nuclear fission?
Nuclear fuel—uranium Uranium is considered a nonrenewable energy source, even though it is a common metal found in rocks worldwide. Nuclear power plants use a certain kind of uranium, referred to as U-235, for fuel because its atoms are easily split apart.
Why does uranium 238 not cause a chain reaction?
Uranium 238 is a fissionable isotope but is not a fissile isotope. U cannot sustain a nuclear fission chain reaction because too many neutrons produced by the fission of 238U have lower energies than the original neutron. 238. U also belongs to the group of fertile isotopes.
What is the decay of Uranium-238?
What element will be formed if thorium-230 undergoes alpha decay?
radium-226
A. The nuclide thorium-230 undergoes alpha emission to give radium-226 .