Turn Up The Heat Yearly Flashcards
What is a isotope
Atoms with the same amount of protons but a different amount of neutrons
What are protons and neutrons held together by
Strong nuclear force
What happens when there are two many neutrons in the nuecleus
The atom becomes unstable and radioactive and begins to decay until stable
What is the rate that a atom decays at called
Half life
Explain the process of half life
half of the radioactive material decays and the other part takes twice as long
What isotope do they use in Radiocarbon dating
Carbon 14
What is radio carbon dating
The process of determining how old an organic relic is
How do they measure the age of something with radiocarbon dating
They scan for the amount of carbon 14 there is in a relic
How is carbon-14 made
Produced in the earths atmosphere when cosmic rays strike nitrogen-14 atoms
Why do they use carbon-14 in radio carbon dating living relics
All living things absorb carbon-14
How do you date a rock
By analysing the decay of uranium in zircon which is commonly found in rocks
The three main types of radiation
- Alpha
- Beta
- Gamma
What happens during the decaying process
The substance releases energy in the form of nuclear energy
What is background radiation
A low level of radiation that surrounds us
Where does background radiation come from
- Cosmic radiation from the sun
- Decay of isotopes in the earths crust
- Radiation from materials
What is ionising rafiation
A type of radiation that pulls electrons from nearby atoms molecules and turns them into ions.
What can long term low dose radiation exposure cause
- DNA damage
- Cancer and tumour growth
What can short term high doses of radiation cause
- Burns
- Nausea
- Death
- Destruction of bone marrow and blood cells
The affects of radiation on the human body depends on(7)
- Mass of the person
- Amount/period of exposure
- Type of radiation
- The radioactive material
- The rate that it is received
- Presences of shielding material
- Distance from radiation source
Characteristics of an alpha particle(6)
- Shoots out helium nuclei
- Slowest type radiation
- Easily blocked
- Harmless outside of the body
- Dangerous if consumed
- Produced by heavier radioactive elements
The Characteristics of beta particles(5)
- Fast moving electrons
- Smaller than alpha particles
- Travel at 99% of the speed of light
- Can penetrate human skin but not metal or wood
- Produced by lighter radioactive particles
The characteristics of gamma rays(7)
- Electromagnetic waves
- Waves not particles
- No mass
- Travel at the speed of light
- Can go through everything
- Cause serious permanent damage to living tissue and DNA
- Produced when alpha and beta particles are made
How to block gamma rays
Need to have a thick shield preferably concrete or lead
What a some medical uses for radiation(2)
- Diagnosing diseases
- Radio therapy
The process that it takes help diagnose disease with radiation(5)
- Radioisotopes are injected or drunks
- Take a PET scan
- Radioisotopes is absorbed by tumours of tissue cell
- Gamma rays are emitted from radioisotopes
- PET scan detects rays
What does PET stand for
Position emission topography
What is radiotherapy
The use of of radiation to kill cancer cells or prevent them from spreading
Is radiotherapy safe to used on people
Yes as it the radiation can be targeted so that damage is minimalised
What are the two types of of radiotherapy
- External
- Internal/brachy therapy
Procedure of external radiotherapy (3)
- Radiation is directed at the cancer
- Each beam strikes the tumour from different directions
- Tumour is blasted with large amount of radiation
Procedure of internal radio therapy(2)
- radioisotopes are placed inside the body near the site of the cancer
- The radioisotopes destroy the cancer
How does a smoke alarm work(3)
- Smoke particles go into the alarms ionisation chamber
- latch on to the positive ions disrupting the current
- Siren sounds
How to irradiate food(2)
Food is exposed to ionising radiation
Kills pest bacteria and food vitamins
Why would you irradiate food
To preserve it
What is a nuclear reaction
It is when a nucleus of an atom interacts with another nucleus or a nucleus particle and creates a new atom and energy is released.
What is nuclear fission
Nuclear fission is when atoms split to form smaller nuclei of smaller atoms which releases radiation heat which can be used for energy
What is nuclear fusion
It is when two small nuclei combine to form larger nuclei which releases energy
What things must be achieved for nuclear fusion to happen
It must be millions of degrees for fusion to occur
How do nuclear power stations work(4)
- Uranium-235 is splits at the bottom of a body of water and energy is created
- the energy creates steam
- the steam is used to spin turbines which are connected to a electrical generator
- the generator creates kinetic energy which turns into electrical energy
Pros of using nuclear energy
Fuel is easy to access
No greenhouse gases
Efficient source of energy
Cons of using nuclear energy
Costs
Safety concerns (water and food chain contamination )
Radiation
Nuclear waste management
List some nuclear accidents
- Chernobyl 1986:power plant explosion
- Fukushima 2011:earthquake and tsunami destroy power plant
