What is pluton made of?

Answer 1

A very small amount of plutonium is found in nature. The majority of it is produced artificially.

The majority of plutonium is made in nuclear reactors:

1. uranium-238 captures a neutron, becoming uranium-239
2. uranium-239 undergoes beta decay, becoming neptunium-239 (halflife 23.5 minutes)
3. neptunium-239 undergoes beta decay, becoming plutonium-239 (halflife 2.33 days)
4. plutonium is then chemically separated from the remaining uranium, neptunium, etc.

Answer 2

Plutonium, being reactive, can be combined with many elements: oxygen, hydrogen, halogens, nitrogen, carbon, sulfur, silicon, selenium, tellurium, etc.

Also plutonium alloys are well known.

Answer 3

Most plutonium in use in the world is man made. It is very rare and hard to find compared to Uranium, since its half-life is much shorter than Uranium; but can be synthesized in a reaction process out of Uranium.

Answer 4

Plutonium is an element (atomic number 94, Pu). So what elements make up plutonium? Plutonium itself! And what atoms make up a chunk of plutonium? Plutonium itself! But plutonium, like all other atoms is made up of neutrons (with certain exceptions), protons, and electrons (under certain exceptions). A normal plutonium atom has 94 electrons, 94 protons, and 150 neutrons.

Answer 5

Plutonium is made out of plutonium. Plutonium is an element,

not a combination of other elements.

Answer 6

Plutonium is obtained in nuclear reactors from uranium:

238

92U + 0n ------92239 U------ β ----- 93239 Np------- β --------23994Pu