0
When an atom undergoes radioactive decay does it become a different element?
Wiki User
∙ 10y ago
That depends on the type of decay, alpha and beta decay change the atom into a different element but gamma decay does not.
Wiki User
∙ 10y ago
Add your answer:
Earn +20 pts
What is radioactive decay with Earth's crust?
When a radioactive isotope of an element releases a radiation particle the sub-atomic structure of it's nucleus changes. If an alpha particle is released the nucleus loses 2 protons and 2 neutrons, making it a new, lighter and smaller atom and therefore a different element. If a beta particle is released one of the neutrons in the nucleus releases an electron and becomes a proton so the atom's mass does not change significantly but t does become a different element.
Are Nuclear wastes non biodegradable?
Actually, they are biodegradeable, sort of. Radioactive materials do decay, or become weaker over time. Eventually they become inert, or non-radioactive. The problem is some radioactive isotopes take tens or even hundreds of thousands or millions of years to decay. The decay rate of a radioactive element is measured in half-lives. After one half-life, half of the radioctivity is gone. Take an element with a half-life of ten years. After ten years, there is half of the radioactivity present. After 20 years, one quarter, after 30 years, one eighth, and so forth. Eventually the level will fall to the point it poses no danger. Plutonium-239 has a half-life of 24,000 years. Uranium-235, used in nuclear reactors, has a half-life of 713,000,000 years.
Importance of radioactive decay?
it is used by scientist to to calculate a rock's age
Who discovered radioactive decay in 1898?
ernest Rutherford _______________________________________________________________ Radioactive decay was actually discovered in 1896 by Henri Bacquerel. Ernest Rutherford discovered the formula of radioactive decay (Such as the falk-life, differences between alpha and beta decay and even how the elements become new elements after the decay), but he did not discover the radioactive decay himself.
How does radioactive decay become radioactive?
That depends on the specific radioisotope. For instance, uranium 238 emits an alpha particle during radioactive decay, reducing the number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus by 2 each and producing thorium 234. On the other hand, carbon 14 emits a beta particle (an electron) during radioactive decay, decreasing the number of neutrons and increasing the number of protons by 1 each and producing nitrogen 14. There are quite a few other examples with different changes depending on the type of radioactive decay.
What would happen to an atom if the number of protons in the nucleus changed?
It would become a different element. It could become radioactive.
Are all elements periodically change to become new element s?
No. Only radioactive elements, which undergo radioactive decay can change to different elements.
Does a radioactive element become stable after its mass number become less than 82?
Not always -- Hydrogen-3 is radioactive, for example.
How can element 92 become element 83?
Through radioactive decay, because Uranium (element 92) is unstable.
How uranium nucleus become stable?
Being radioactive, uranium is not a stable element.
When an atom undergoes radioactive decay when does it become a completely different element?
An atom of a given isotope will undergo radioactive decay whenever it feels like it. No joke. The nucleus of a radioactive isotope is unstable. Always. But that atom has no predictable moment of instability leading immediately to the decay event. We use something called a half life to estimate how long it will take for half a given quantity of an isotope to undergo radioactive decay until half the original amount is left, but this is a statistically calculated period. No one knows how long it will take a given atom of a radioactive isotope to decay, except that those with very short half lives will pretty much disappear relatively quickly.
Do radioactive elements emit radiation all the time?
In order for an atom of an element that is not radioactive to become radioactive, the isotope has to change. This can happen as a result of neutron capture. Neutron capture can simply change the isotope of an atom, as when cobalt-59, which is not radioactive, captures a neutron to become cobalt-60, which is radioactive. Neutron capture can also result in immediate radioactive decay of the atom struck, even if it is not radioactive. For example helium-3 can capture a neutron to produce two atoms of hydrogen, one of hydrogen-3 and one of hydrogen-1.
What is the nuclear decay equation for hydrogen-hydrogen?
The only hydrogen isotope that undergoes any type of radioactive decay is tritium (hydrogen-3), it undergoes beta decay to become helium-3. If that's not what you were asking about, I'm confused by your question.
Do Elements become radioactive when the strong nuclear force overcomes the repulsive electrostatic force?
No. Radioactive elements are normally a result of the atom actually being an isotope of that element. An isotope is an atom of an element that has a different amount of neutrons than the norm. For example, the normal amount of neutrons in a Carbon atom is six, but Carbon-14 has eight, and Carbon-16 has ten. These isotopes are normally radioactive.
What type of radioactive decay causes the radionuclide to become an element with a higher atomic number?
beta emmisions
What would happen to the type of atom when the number of protons is changed?
It would become an atom of a different element. This can only happen during radioactive decay, nuclear fusion, or nuclear fission.
Changing the number of protons in an atom would change what?
If an atom were to change the number of protons it had than it would change the atomic number and therefore become a different element. Radioactive decay is one example of this, for example, alpha decay is when a radioactive nucleus emits an alpha particle (2 protons + 2 neutrons) and in doing so, becomes a nucleus of a different element. Polonium-212 decays to Lead-208 in this way.
