Chemistry Chapter 17

MeV

MeV

mega electron volt 10 to the 6 electron volts

Lu

one atomic mass unit—931.5 MeV

Alpha decay

an unstable atom that ejects a clump of particle—helium ejected

Beta decay

electron emitted, increased by one

Gamma decay

releases gamma radiation, highest energy of electron radiation

Neutron radiation

releases neutrons (gamma and neutron can treat cancer)

Half-life

decay rate of a substance

Activity

amount of decay occurring in a radioactive substance

Becquerel

SI unit of activity

Nuclear fission

splitting of atom

Chain reaction

one split cause multiple splits, etc

Critical mass

amount and density of 235 U present

Nuclear reactor

device for safely initiating and controlling a fission chain reaction; uses a control chain reaction to produce energy

Enrichment

process of making uranium feasible so it could produce energy

Control rods

control reaction by absorbing some of the neutrons

Containment vessel

designed to prevent emission of radioactive material into the environment

Meltdown

core gets so hot it melts

Loss of coolant

accident in which there was a pipe rupture, pump failure, or other breakdown deprives the core of the coolant, possibly causing the core to overheat

Breeder reactors

generate power and recycle fuel; produces more fuel than it uses

Reprocessing

recycling nuclear fuel

Nuclear fusion

thermonuclear reactions; binding of energy per nucleon

Nuclear chemistry

study of reactions involving the nucleus

Radioactivity

isotopes of certain elements that continually emit invisible rays

Stable

stays the same

Unstable

have a tendency to spontaneously shed subatomic particles or otherwise break apart

Nuclear radiation

Anything that radiates from the Nucleus

Radioactive

tend to undergo nuclear decay and thereby emit nuclear radiation

Nuclide

a specific type of atom described by both its atomic number and mass number

Strong nuclear force

The force that binds the nucleus together

Radioactive decay

conversion of one nuclide into another in a spontaneous nuclear reaction

Nuclear mass defect

the mass of every atom is measurably less than the total mass of its individual particles

Law of conservation of matter and energy

matter and energy can neither be created nor destroyed

Nuclear binding energy

energy equivalent of the mass defect

Electron volt

kinetic energy gained by an electron when it is accelerated through 1 V of electrical potential.