CH 11 Chem - Nuclear Chemistry

Radioactivity

emission of high/large amounts of energy by unstable atoms of different elements or compounds

what causes radioactivity?

the nucleus is unstable, leading to instability of atoms; caused by too many protons compared to the number of neutrons or too many neutrons compared to number of protons

How much kcal in wood?

4.3 kcal/g

How much kcal in coal?

7.4kcal/g

How much kcal in gasoline?

11.5kcal/g

How much kcal in a radioactive substance?

millions of kcal/g

What is an isotope?

different atoms of the same element with the same atomic number, number of protons and electrons, but DIFFERENT atomic mass, mass number and number of neutrons

Protum

a hydrogen isotope with one proton and no neutrons, represented as 1H. 99% of H is protum

deutrum

a hydrogen isotope with one proton and one neutron, represented as 2H, less than 1% and is radioactive

tritrium

a hydrogen isotope with one proton and two neutrons, represented as 3H, less than 1% and is radioactive

six major types of high energy particles or radation

including alpha particles, beta particles, gamma rays, proton, neutrons and positrons,

what is alpha radiation?

contains a He nucleus, travels at 1/10 at the speed of light; considered slowest

what is beta radation?

made up of electrons; more at 9/10 at the speed of light

what is gamma radiation

travels at the speed of light, V greek symbol

positron

postively charged electron

characteristics of a standard chem reaction

1. occur at the electron level in the outermost energy lvl

2. isotopes behave the same way

3. rxn rate affected by temp and pressure, can make it go faster

4. normal amounts of energy gained or released

5. found via calorimeter

characteristics of a nuclear chem reaction

1. occurs within the nucleus level

2. isotopes behave different ; the reaction is within the nucleus

3. reaction rate is not affected by temp or pressure

4. energy change in millions of kcal

5. radiation measure by Geiger counter

radiocative decay

natural process by which a radioactive substance released radiation

bombardment experiment

adds a neutron

what is a linear accelerator

A device that accelerates atomic particles along a linear path and isolates the neutron

what is a cyclotron?

A type of particle accelerator that uses a magnetic field to accelerate charged particles along a spiral path to high energies.

what is the difference between linear accelerator and cyclotron?

The primary difference is that a linear accelerator moves particles along a straight line while a cyclotron accelerates particles in a circular spiral path using magnetic fields.