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Many radioactive isotopes are more radioactive than the naturally occurring uranium isotopes:
- All fission product isotopes are more radioactive (e.g. iodine-131, strontium-90)
- Most radioactive isotopes in the uranium --> lead decay chain are more radioactive (e.g. radium, radon, polonium)
- Plutonium is more radioactive
- Tritium is more radioactive
- Carbon-14 is more radioactive
- Artificially produced uranium isotopes are more radioactive (e.g. uranium-233, uranium-236)
- etc.
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Why would a fusion reactor produce less radioactive waste than a fission reactor?
In my understanding, this is because a fusion reactor reacts deuterium to produce helium, which is not radioactive, whereas a fission uses uranium or plutonium, for example, which may react to form various radioactive isotopes. A fusion reactor may contain small quantities of tritium, in which case a radioactive isotope of hydrogen may be produced, but given that the majority of reactions occurring involve solely the deuterium, there is less radioactive waste produced.
Can radium bombs be very destructive as it is million times radioactive than uranium?
The reason why an atomic bomb produces such a large explosion is that certain radioactive isotopes, such as U-235 or plutonium, can be made to undergo a chain reaction in which all the atoms will decay in a very short period of time (a small fraction of a second) releasing all the energy at once. Radium does not do that. However, if you had a substantial quantity of radium you could certainly use it to create radioactive contamination which could induce cancer in many people. That is known as a "dirty bomb".
What is the estimate for how long it takes nuclear waste to complettly decay?
Each radioactive isotope has its own rate of decay, called the "half-life". This is the time that it takes for one-half of the radioactive elements to decay into something else. For very radioactive elements, the half-life is pretty short, but sometimes the element that id decays into is itself radioactive. It _NEVER_ completely decays, but at some point the nuclear waste is no more radioactive than the background material. Remember that some elements like uranium are naturally found in rock formations, and that elements like radon are naturally occuring in the environment. This becomes a problem in the basements moutainous areas, where radon gas accumulates and can cause lung cancers. In general, nuclear waste needs to be protected and isolated for about 50 years; after that, the residual radioactivity isn't going to be especially hazardous.
Are the nuclei of final elements produced by nuclear decay more stable or less stable than the nuclei of original radioactive elements?
Of course they are more stable, therefore they formed naturally.
How many protons are needed for a element to be naturally radioactive?
Whether an ISOTOPE (not element) is naturally radioactive depends not only on the number of protons, but also on the number of neutrons. For EVERY element, there are radioactive isotopes.There has to be a certain relationship between the number of protons and the number of neutrons, but the relationship isn't a simple one.
Is depleted uranium 40 percent more radioactive than natural uranium?
Depleted uranium is approx. 60% less radioactive than an equivalent mass of natural uranium.
What elements did Marie Curie discovered?
She discovered the elements Polonium, which was named after her homeland, and radium. Polonium is 4x more radioactive than uranium and radium is 10x more radioactive than uranium.
How did Pierre and Marie Curie discovered the presence of radioactive elements other than uranium?
Polonium and radium are discovered in wastes from uranium minerals, after uranium separation. The important radioactivity of these residues (without uranium) warned the two about the possible existence of other radioactive elements.
What element is 2 million times more radioactive than Uranium?
radium
How uranium is stored in nature as it radioactive element?
Uranium exist in nature as minerals and ores; more than 200 uranium minerals are known today.
What element is 1 million times more radioactive than uranium?
Radium (Ra)
Which element is more radioactive than uranium?
polonium, radium, plutonium and many others
Which element is more radioactive and explosive uranium or polonium?
Polonium is more toxic and has a specific radioactivity greater than uranium but cannot be used in nuclear weapons.
Name the element which is two million times more radioactive than uranium?
Radium (Ra)
What was Marie Curie's achievements?
she and her husband discovered Radium- a substance 100 times more radioactive than uranium
What element is 2 million times radioactive than uranium?
radium
Is uranium clean?
Uranium is a radioactive element; uranium is also a toxic element. But the nuclear energy based on uranium is cleaner than the energy based on coal or oil.
