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Radioactive decay chain
________- a series of nuclear reactions that begins with an unstable nucleus and terminates with a stable one; also known as nuclear disintegration series.
RBE
________ (Relative Biological Effectiveness): The radiation dose is multiplies by a factor that measures the relative damages caused by the radiation.
Nuclear Transmutations
________- occurs when a nucleus is struck by a neutron or by another nucleus which causes it to change its identity.
Free Radical
________- a substance with one or more unpaired electrons, as seen in the Lewis structure shown in the margin.
fuel elements
When the ________ are removed from the reactor, they are initially very radioactive.
Nucleons
________- protons and neutrons; the two types of subatomic particles that reside in the nucleus.
Cyclotron
________- in this device, charged particles move in a spiral path within two D- shaped electrodes.
Primary Coolant
________- a substance that transports the heat generated by the nuclear chain reaction away from the reactor core.
small quantity
When a(n) ________ of a radioisotope is mixed with the naturally occurring stable isotopes of the same element, all the isotopes go through the same reactions together.
Radionuclides
________- nuclides that are radioactive.
neptunium
Elements 93 (________, Np) and 94 (plutonium, Pu) were produced in 1940 by bombarding uranium- 238 with neutrons:
Radioactive decay
________- a first- order kinetic process.
Radiocarbon
________ dating- the technique of dating when carbon- 14 is used in radiometric dating.
Fission
________: Happens when heavy nuclei gain stability and therefore give off energy if they are fragmented into two midsized nuclei.
Synchrotron
________- in this device, the magnetic fields are synchronized so that the particle moves in a circular rather than a spiral path.
Gray
________ (Gy)- the SI unit of absorbed dose, corresponds to the absorption of 1 J of energy per kilogram of tissue.
Fusion
________ is appealing as an energy source because of the availability of light isotopes on Earth and because ________ products are generally not radioactive.
Curie
________ (Ci)- an older unit of activity, defined as 3.7 x 10^10 disintegrations per second, which is the rate of decay of 1 g of radium.
Radioisotopes
________- atoms containing radionuclides.
moderator
The reactor operates without a(n) ________, which means the neutrons used are not slowed down.
Nuclide
________- a nucleus containing a specified number of protons and neutrons.
Positron emission
________ has the effect of converting a proton to a neutron, thereby decreasing the atomic number of the nucleus by 1 while not changing the mass number:
Rad
________ (Radiation Absorbed Dose)- corresponds to the absorption of 1 X 10^- 2 J of energy per kilogram of tissue.
Cobalt
________- 60, which is used in cancer radiation therapy, is produced by neutron capture.
Control Rods
________- composed of materials that absorb neutrons, such as boron- 10 or an alloy of silver, indium, and cadmium.
Isotopes
________- atoms with the same atomic number but different mass numbers.
Electron capture
________, like positron emission, has the effect of converting a proton to a neutron:
spontaneously decomposes
When a nucleus ________ in this way, it is said to be radioactive and to have decayed or to have undergone radioactive decay.
Strong nuclear force
________- a strong force of attraction at distances, existing between nucleons.
Mass Defect
________- the mass difference between a nucleus and its constituent nucleons.
Radiometric
________ dating- the method of dating objects based on their isotopes and isotope abundances.
International Union
________ for Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC)- the international body that authorizes names of new elements after their experimental discovery and confirmation.
nuclear disintegration
It is defined as one ________ per second.
Nuclear fission
________ is the process used to generate energy in nuclear power plants.
Thermonuclear Reactions
________- also known as Fusion Reactions.
Critical Mass
________- the amount of fissionable material large enough to maintain a chain reaction with a constant rate of fission.
Nuclear Binding Energies
________- the energy required to separate a nucleus into its individual nucleons.
Alpha particles
________ and other positively charged particles must move ver y fast to overcome the electrostatic repulsion between them and the target nucleus.
Positron
________- is a particle that has the same mass as an electron (thus, we use the letter e and superscript 0 for the mass) but the opposite charge (represented by the +1 subscript)
Nuclear power plants
________ use nuclear fission to generate energy.
order process
A first- ________ has a characteristic half- life, which is the time required for half of any given quantity of a substance to react.
radioisotope
Because the ________ can be used to trace the path of the element, it is called a radiotracer.
Moderator
________- it functions to slow down the neutrons (to speeds of a few kilometers per second) so that they can be captured more readily by the fissionable nuclei.
Positron emission
________ causes the atomic number of the reactant in this equation to decrease from 6 to 5.
Nuclear transmutations
________ have been used to produce the elements with atomic number above 92, collectively known as the transuranium elements because they follow uranium in the periodic table.
radionuclides
However, ________ are unstable and spontaneously emit particles and electromagnetic radiation.
Nucleons
protons and neutrons; the two types of subatomic particles that reside in the nucleus
Mass number
the total number of nucleons in the nucleus
Isotopes
atoms with the same atomic number but different mass numbers
Nuclide
a nucleus containing a specified number of protons and neutrons
Radionuclides
nuclides that are radioactive
Radioisotopes
atoms containing radionuclides
Beta Radiation
consists of streams of beta particles, which are high-speed electrons emitted by an unstable nucleus
Gamma Radiation
consists of high-energy photons (that is, electromagnetic radiation of very short wavelength)
Strong nuclear force
a strong force of attraction at distances, existing between nucleons
Radioactive decay chain
a series of nuclear reactions that begins with an unstable nucleus and terminates with a stable one; also known as nuclear disintegration series
Nuclear Transmutations
occurs when a nucleus is struck by a neutron or by another nucleus which causes it to change its identity
Cyclotron
in this device, charged particles move in a spiral path within two D-shaped electrodes
Synchrotron
in this device, the magnetic fields are synchronized so that the particle moves in a circular rather than a spiral path
International Union for Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC)
the international body that authorizes names of new elements after their experimental discovery and confirmation
Radioactive decay
a first-order kinetic process
Radiometric dating
the method of dating objects based on their isotopes and isotope abundances
Radiocarbon dating
the technique of dating when carbon-14 is used in radiometric dating
Activity
the rate at which a sample decays and it is often expressed as number of disintegrations per unit of time
Becquerel (Bq)
the SI unit for expressing activity
Curie (Ci )
an older unit of activity, defined as 3.7 x 10^10 disintegrations per second, which is the rate of decay of 1 g of radium
A 4.0-mCi sample of cobalt-60 undergoes
and so has an activity of 1.5 x 10^8 Bq
Nuclear Binding Energies
the energy required to separate a nucleus into its individual nucleons
Mass Defect
the mass difference between a nucleus and its constituent nucleons
Fission
Happens when heavy nuclei gain stability and therefore give off energy if they are fragmented into two midsized nuclei
Fusion
Happens when the sharp increase in the graph for small mass numbers, even greater amounts of energy are released if very light nuclei are combined, or fused together, to give more massive nuclei
Chain Reactions
reactions that multiply
Critical Mass
the amount of fissionable material large enough to maintain a chain reaction with a constant rate of fission
Supercritical Mass
a mass in excess of a critical mass
Fuel Elements
contain enriched uranium in the form of UO2 pellets encased in zirconium or stainless steel tubes
Control Rods
composed of materials that absorb neutrons, such as boron-10 or an alloy of silver, indium, and cadmium
Moderator
it functions to slow down the neutrons (to speeds of a few kilometers per second) so that they can be captured more readily by the fissionable nuclei
Primary Coolant
a substance that transports the heat generated by the nuclear chain reaction away from the reactor core
Pressurized Water Reactor
the most common commercial reactor design wherein the water acts as both the moderator and the primary coolant
Boiling Water Reactor
generates steam by boiling the primary coolant; thus, no secondary coolant is needed
Gas Cooled Reactor
uses a gas, typically CO2, as primary coolant and graphite as the moderator
Fast Breeder Reactor
offers one approach to getting more power out of existing uranium sources and potentially reducing radioactive waste
Thermonuclear Reactions
also known as Fusion Reactions
Ionizing Radiations
radiation that causes ionization which is far more harmful to biological systems than radiation that doesnt cause ionization
Nonionizing Radiations
much lower energy than ionizing radiations, such as radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation or slow moving neutrons
Free Radical
a substance with one or more unpaired electrons, as seen in the Lewis structure shown in the margin
Gray (Gy)
the SI unit of absorbed dose, corresponds to the absorption of 1 J of energy per kilogram of tissue
Rad (Radiation Absorbed Dose)
corresponds to the absorption of 1 X 10^-2 J of energy per kilogram of tissue
RBE (Relative Biological Effectiveness)
The radiation dose is multiplies by a factor that measures the relative damages caused by the radiation
Sievert (Sv)
SI unit for effective dose
Note 
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