Nuclear Chemistry and Radioactivity

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Nuclear chemistry is the study of reactions involving changes in atomic nuclei. Unlike regular chemistry which involves rearrangement of atoms by breaking and forming chemical bonds, nuclear chemistry…

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ᴬ_Z X represents nuclear notation where: - X = element symbol - Z = atomic number (number of protons) - A = mass number (total number of nucleons = protons + neutrons) - N = number of neutrons = A - Z…

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• Isotopes: Same Z, different N (²²Na, ²³Na, ²⁴Na) • Isobars: Same A, different Z (¹⁴C, ¹⁴N) • Isotones: Same N, different Z (¹³C, ¹⁴N both have 7 neutrons) • Mirror nuclei: Isobars where proton and n…

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Even-even nuclides (both Z and N even) are most stable - 165 naturally occurring nuclides (85% of earth's crust). Even-odd or odd-even are moderately stable - about 105 total. Odd-odd nuclides are lea…

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• Light nuclei (A < 40): N/Z ≈ 1 for stability • Medium nuclei (40 < A < 90): N/Z gradually increases, most stable around ⁵⁶Fe • Heavy nuclei (A > 90): N/Z > 1.3, need more neutrons to overcome coulom…

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Magic numbers are 2, 8, 20, 28, 50, 82, and 126. Nuclei with these numbers of protons or neutrons are particularly stable and abundant in nature. Example: ²⁰⁸Pb has both 82 protons and 126 neutrons (d…

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Nuclear binding energy is the energy required to break a nucleus into its constituent nucleons. Mass defect (Δm) is the difference between calculated mass and observed mass of a nucleus. Δm = [Z·mₕ + …

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For ⁴He: Z = 2, A = 4, N = 2 Δm = [2 × 1.0078 + 2 × 1.0087] - 4.0026 = [2.0156 + 2.0174] - 4.0026 = 4.033 - 4.0026 = 0.0304 u B.E. = 0.0304 × 931.4 = 28.31 MeV Binding energy per nucleon = 28.