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No, radioactive decay is not a chemical reaction. Radioactive decay is a type of change in the nucleus of an atom that results from instability in that nucleus. And that is a nuclear reaction rather than a chemical one.

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14y ago
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12y ago

Radioactive decay has nothing to do with chemistry and therefore may not be a chemical reaction. But since matter changes its properties (they are even irreversibly) it is considered to be reaction of one (elemental) reactant. Most decay reactions are kinetically of zero order.

Different types of radioactive decay include decay by alpha emission (emits an alpha particle, 2 protons and 2 neutrons), Beta - emission, and Beta + emission (positron emission or electron capture).

Some radioactive materials also output gamma rays, protons, neutrons, and can decay by fission.

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12y ago

Not determined, the radioactive decay is a statistical phenomenon.

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11y ago

I believe it is a first order reaction.

So the integrated rate law would be:

ln[A]final = -kt + ln[A]inital

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11y ago

parent element

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11y ago

The radioactive element!

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13y ago

Always

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Q: What decays first duriing radioactive decay?
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What is the equation for beta decay of uranium-237?

Uranium-237 decays by beta- decay to Neptunium-237 with a half-life of 6.75 days, emitting a W- boson which then decays to an electron and an electron antineutrino... 92237U --> 93237Np + (W- --> e- + v-e)


Is the percentage of radioactive atoms that decay during one half-life always the same?

No time required for completion of first half life is not same as 2nd one.Even it has been found that time required for 99.9% completion is almost 10 times of half life period.


How can you say that radioactive decay is random unless you know that the nuclides are identical in the first place?

Radioactive decay is a random event. But we can assess it by statistical analysis of a large number of decay events across time for a given radionuclide. Standard stastical analysis ideas apply. The way we know that it is the radionuclide we specify is that we refine the sample chemically. Then we look at the decay mode. If it is a situation where there is particle emission, we can identify the particle and the energy it comes out at. If its electromagnetic, we can specify an energy associated with the photon. The mode of decay and the energy cast off are the ways we can insure our "count" of the decay events specifically targets the radionuclide we are investigating. That and the applied chemistry we specified to clean up the sample. We're good at this radioactive decay thing. We can count even a very few decay events, and do so accurately across time (though more is better). And because we've done our homework as regards type of decay and energies, we know what it is that is decaying, and how long it is taking to decay. We can arrive at a half-life for a given radionuclide. A link can be found below.


What is the longest radioactive halflife?

First, it isn't very accurate to talk about a radioactive "element"; you should talk about radioactive isotopes. Different isotopes of the same element can have very different behavior in this sense. For example, hydrogen-1 and hydrogen-2 are stable, while hydrogen-3 is not (half-life about 19 years).Individual atoms, in a radioactive isotope, will decay at a random moment. The half-life refers to how long it takes for half of the atoms in a given sample to decay (and convert to some other type of isotope).


What is the equation Bismuth-210 to Lead-206 decay?

Lead-210 decays by alpha or beta decay. The equation for the alpha decay of 210Pb is: 82210Pb --> 80206Hg + 24He representing the alpha particle as a helium nucleus. The equation for the beta decay of 210Pb is: 82210Pb --> 83210Bi + -10e where the -10e is an electron.

Related questions

What kinetics does radioactive decay obey?

First order


What is the first radioactive element that forms when uranium 238 decays?

The isotope 234 Th.


Why radioactive decay is always first order reaction?

This is because only one isotope decay.


What is the difference between Chemical kinetics vs Chemical decay?

Chemical decay, also known as radioactive decay, is a process that occurs naturally (usually in isotopes or unstable substances) Chemical Kinetics is one of the ways you can analyze radioactive decay. Although it should be noted that radioactive decay undergoes first order decay when using Chemical Kinetics.


What is the percentage of radioactive nuclei left after 3 half lives have passed?

12.5%


What type of nuclear decay does Uranium undergo?

Uranium has a different decay chain/series for its different isotopes. Uranium 238 for example first decays to thorium 234 through alpha decay while U235 alpha decays to thorium 231. Both have different half lifes which can be found on a natural decay series chart for the said element. The thorium in either case then beta decays to another element.


What is the equation for beta decay of uranium-237?

Uranium-237 decays by beta- decay to Neptunium-237 with a half-life of 6.75 days, emitting a W- boson which then decays to an electron and an electron antineutrino... 92237U --> 93237Np + (W- --> e- + v-e)


What follows radioactive decay?

The final product is a stable isotope, but what it is depends on the decay. The intermediate steps constitute what is called a decay chain. For example, one well known decay chain is that of thorium-232, which goes through a series of radioactive isotopes decaying each to the next. The final product is lead-208, which stops the process since it is stable and does not decay further. Other decay chains produce other results. Sometimes the first decay produces a stable result, as in the case of tritium, which decays to helium-3.


What element does radium become once it has decayed?

Radium undergoes radioactive decay, specifically alpha decay, to become radon. Radium-226 (226Ra) will undergo alpha decay releasing that alpha particle, which is a helium-4 nucleus, to become radon-222 (222Rn).


The uranium-235 decay series begins with the emission of an alpha particle If the daughter decays by beta emission what is the resulting nuclide?

Uranium-235 will not beta decay first. If you google "Chart of Nuclides" you can follow the entire decay chain yourself using each isotope's most likely decay type.


How fast a radioactive element decays is given by is what?

It,s half life.The time it takes to emit 50% of the radioactive emission it did when first counted.


What is the decay element of uranium?

It is not yet discovered since all of the uranium isotopes are having half life for several millions of years. We would be able to find it after atleast 700 millions of years.