Isotopes

Question 1

Americium-241
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 1

432.2 years
Alpha (5.486MeV)
Gamma (59KeV)
Smoke detectors, neutron source (AmBe) for density gauge, RTG but not as good as Pu-238

Question 2

Carbon-14
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 2

5730+/-40 years
Beta decay(.156MeV)
Carbon dating up to 60,000 years, best detected in liquid scintillation. Produced by comics radiation of neutron capture in nitrogen-14 and produces carbon-14 and a proton. Also created in nuclear explosions, reactors, and decay chains.

Question 3

Radium-226
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 3

1600 years
Alpha decay(4.871MeV)
Was used for radio luminescent paint up until the 1980s. Was discovery by the Curries. One Currie is 1 gram of radium disintegrations for 1 seconds at 3.7x10^10.

Question 4

Tritium
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 4

12.32 years
Beta(.01859MeV) 5.7KeV average beta E
Used in radio luminescent paint ,fusion fuels, and bombs. Created by neutron capture of lithium-6 or very rarely cosmic radiation. Safe to humans as beta can’t penetrate dead skin layer.

Question 5

Strontium-90
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 5

28.8 years
Beta decay (.456MeV)
Medical industry, paint, Soviet RTGs and comes from reactors and weapons. Was suggest in the Manhattan project to be used as a radiological warfare weapon. Algae good for bioremediation.

Question 6

Cesium-137
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 6

30.05 years
Beta decay (0.5120MeV) Gamma(.6617MeV)
Created in nuclear fission. Used in sources, radiation therapy, flow meters, thickness gauges, and moisture contents

Question 7

Cobalt-60
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 7

5.27 years
Beta(.317MeV)
Gamma(1.1732, 1.3325 MeV)
Used in gamma ray scans, radiation therapy, and sterilization.

Question 8

Xenon-135
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 8

9.2 Hours
Beta (1.168 MeV)
Xenon is a fission product and is the most powerful known neutron poison at 2-3 million barns.

Question 9

Uranium-235
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 9

703,800,000 years
Alpha (4.679)
Occurs at .72% of natural uranium. Fissile. Radioactive decay chain division has a remainder of 3. Reactor and bomb fuel.

Question 10

Uranium-238
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 10

4.468 Billion years
Alpha (4.267)
99% naturally occurring. Fertile material. Used in Shielding both gamma and tank armor. Projectiles and bombs. Used to generate Pu-239. Natural decay chain remainder of 2.

Question 11

Plutonium-239
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 11

24110 years
Alpha (5.156 MeV)
Fissile. Made by neutron absorption in U-238 and two beta decays. Used in bombs and reactor fuel. Super grade Pu, 2-3% Pu-240 is need for navy due to the increased time around weapons and the gamma 240 produces.

Question 12

Plutonium-238
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 12

87.7 years
Alpha (5.593 MeV)
Fissile. Used in RTGs and produces about .57 watts per gram. Mostly produced by bombarding Np-237 with neutrons and beta decay.

Question 13

Iron-55
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 13

2.737 years
Electron Capture (.00519)
Used as a potential X-Ray source or Auger elections. Comes from Fe-54 absorbing a neutrons.

Question 14

Polonium-210
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 14

138.376 days
Alpha (5.407 MeV)
Decay chain of U-238. Contaminate found mostly in tobacco and seafood. Produces 140 watts per gram. Used as initiators. (a,n) process with beryllium. One microgram can kill an adult. Extremely toxic due to its radioactivity.

Question 15

Iodine-131
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 15

8.0197 days
Beta (606.3 or 333.8 KeV)
Gamma (364 or 636 KeV)
Fission product. Accumulates in the thyroid. Better to have a high dose to kill the thyroid than to have a lower dose and get cancer.

Question 16

Iridium-192
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 16

73.827 days
Beta ( various )
Gamma ( .38 MeV average )
Electron capture
Created from neutron capture in natural Iridium. Used in radiotherapy and gamma ray source for industry.

Question 17

Sb-125
Half life
Decay method
Applications

Answer 17

2.758 years
Beta (101KeV
Antimony is the name. Used in industries that have lead involved with it. Fission product. Turns to Te-125m

Question 18

Actinium-227
Half Life
Decay Method
Application

Answer 18

21.77 years
Alpha (1.38% )
Beta (98.62% )
Decay product from U-235. No current uses.

Question 19

Californium-252
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 19

2.645 years
Alpha (96.9%)
Spontaneous Fission (3.1%)
Strong neutron emitter for reactor starters. Defect detectors.

Question 20

Beryllium-10
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 20

1,390,000 years
Beta (.5560 MeV)
Created naturally by cosmic ray interaction with nitrogen. Used to monitor soil erosion.

Question 21

Fluorine-18
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 21

109 minutes
Positron(97%, .6555Mev)
Electron Capture (3%, 1.6555 MeV)
Used as a tracer for PET scans

Question 22

Sodium-22
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 22

2.602 years
Positron 90%
Electron capture 10%
Being investigated as a generator of muons for catalyzing fusion of deuterium. Positron source.

Question 23

Potassium-40
Half Life
Decay Method
Applications

Answer 23

1.25 Billion years
Beta (89%, .5MeV)
EC/B+ Gamma (11%)
Naturally occurring. Used in Potassium-Aragon dating for minerals over 100,000 years old.