Where does plutonium come from?

Answer 1

Plutonium is an artificial element, discovered in 1940 at Berkeley Laboratories by Glenn Seaborg and Edwin McMillan; plutonium is obtained by nuclear reactions: 23892U + 10n ----→ 23992U --- β- -→ 23993Np --- β- -→ 23994Pu

Answer 2

Plutonium is a radioactive element that is primarily artificially synthesized in nuclear reactors as a byproduct of uranium fission. It can also be found in small amounts in nature as a result of uranium decay.

Answer 3

Plutonium is a transuranic radioactive chemical element with the symbol Pu and

atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes

when exposed to air, and forming a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally

exhibits six allotropes and four oxidation states. It reacts with carbon, halogens, nitrogen,

silicon, and hydrogen.

When exposed to moist air, it forms oxides and hydrides that expand the sample up to

70% in volume, which in turn flake off as a powder that can spontaneously ignite. It is

radioactive and can accumulate in the bones. These properties make the handling of

plutonium dangerous.

Plutonium is the heaviest primordial element by virtue of its most stable isotope, Plutonium-244,

whose half-life of about 80 million years is just long enough for the element to be found in

trace quantities in nature. Plutonium is mostly a byproduct of nucloear reactions in reactors

where some of the neutrons released by the fission process convert uranium-238 nuclei into

plutonium. Both plutonium-239 and plutonium-241 are fissile, meaning that they can sustain

a nuclear chain reaction, leading to applications in nuclear weapons and nuclear reactors.

Plutonium-240 exhibits a high rate of spontaneous fission, raising the neutron flux of any

sample containing it. The presence of plutonium-240 limits a sample's usability for weapons

or reactor fuel, and determines its grade. Plutonium-238 has a half-life of 88 years and

emits alpha particles. It is a heat source in radioisotope thermoelectric generators, which

are used to power some spacecraft. Plutonium isotopes are expensive and inconvenient to

separate, so particular isotopes are usually manufactured in specialized reactors.

Answer 4

Plutonium is an artificial chemical element, radioactive, solid metal at room temperature, toxic, member of the actinides group, usd in nuclear weapons or as nuclear fuel in nuclear energetic reactors.

Answer 5

The name plutonium is derived from the name of the dwarf planet Pluto.

Answer 6

The name plutonium is derived from the name of the Latin god Pluto.

The symbol Pu was chosen by convention: the first letter of the name and the third.

Answer 7

Plutonium is a man made chemical element.

Answer 8

* Plutonium 244 is a natural isotope, very rare, probably obtained by stellar nucleosynthesis.

* Plutonium 244 is also obtained as a residue of nuclear weapons explosins.

Answer 9

Plutonium comes from uranium.

Answer 10

the (then) planet pluto.