Plutonium
1. Identifies a radioisotope that could be used as a fuel to produce electricity in Australia
Plutonium 239 is a radioactive isotope that is a possible fuel source that could be used to produced electricity in Australia.
2. Describes how the isotope is produced (from raw materials)
This element can be found naturally occurring in the earth's crust. Due to its relatively short half-life, it decays before it can be mined, extracted and used. It can also be found in trace amounts within uranium deposits. Plutonium 239 however, can be formed synthetically and is a byproduct of uranium. Once uranium 238 decays and undergoes fusion, it is then extracted by burning the uranium, which is a process used in nuclear reactors, and then collected
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Outlines the physical properties of the isotope
The Physical properties of Plutonium 239
Colour: Plutonium is an actinide metal of silver colour, it forms an outer coating of dull grey appearance and begins to tarnish when exposed to oxygen.
Melting Point: 639.5°C
Boiling point: 3228°C.
Density: 19.816 g/cm3 (at room temperature)
Half-Life: 24110
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2s2 2p6. 3s2 3p6 3d10. 4s2 4p6 4d10 4f14. 5s2 5p6 5d10 5f6. 6s2 6p6. 7s2
6. Outline the chemical properties (including its position in the periodic table)
Plutonium is placed 94th on the periodic table, which is equivalent to its atomic number. It is located in the Actinide metals section and also the F-block.
Chemical Properties:
Reaction with air:
- When plutonium is exposed to air it begins to oxidise, it forms a yellowish-brown outer coat and begins to tarnish.
Soluble in:
- Hydrochloric acid
Insoluble in:
- Nitric acid
- Concentrated hydrogen sulfide
The Critical Mass:
- Around 300 grams which is only about a third of that of Uranium 235
Allotopic Structures:
- Plutonium exhibits six forms of crystalline structures. The only form that exists at room temperature is the alpha structure. It has the highest electrical resistivity of any metallic
4.) I noticed that there is a relationship between the ionic radius and the atomic number of the representative elements in Group 1A. The higher the atomic number, the bigger the ionic radius is. So, while hydrogen has an atomic number of 1 and Francium has an atomic number of 87, it is safe to assume that FR has a higher ionic radius. This is true; the ionic radius for Hydrogen is 0.012, and for Francium, it is 0.194.
Scientists found out that they could use the abundant source of uranium 238 and produce plutonium from it. To do this, they needed special nuclear reactors that could sustain the energy produced by experimenting with these radioactive elements. The Combined Policy Committee decided to proceed with the design and construction of a moderated heavy water nuclear reactor in Canada on April 13, 1944. This reactor was important to the further research conducted on producing plutonium efficiently and enriching uranium to a higher level, to have more explosive power. It allowed to experiment safely using heavy water to slow down chain reactions and it lead to new discoveries and plans of the project to the Americans and the British.
The unknown sample in cup number 6 is a metal because it is a good conductor of electricity, lustrous, and can be bent and not completely broken. Also it did not break down when acid was added to it meaning it has more of a basic
Conversely, fission occurs when a neutron collides with an isotope like uranium-235 (U-235). Which, creates heat, breaks U-235 down into smaller isotopes, and allows another neutron to collides with another U-235 molecule to start the chain reaction (Duke Energy, 2013). Therefore, fission is what currently fuels nuclear energy, with U-235 being the most common isotope (Duke Energy, 2013). Subsequently, there is a misconception on how nuclear fuel is used to generate electricity.
The nuclear waste in the water and soil is the source of the high number of rare cancer mutations in the region, and the companies that were involved in the creation and storage of the waste should accept liability for their error. St. Louis possesses a concealed history with nuclear technology and radioactive wastes. At the beginning of the atomic age, dating back to the 1940’s, Mallinckrodt Chemical Works began producing uranium oxide for usage in chemical reactions, which would eventually lead to the invention of atomic bombs. In 1962, the Uranium Division of Mallinckrodt sent out a newsletter that read, “Mallinckrodt’s little uranium processing plant was the sole source of supply of purified uranium dioxide to the Manhattan project until well into 1943” (“Uranium...”). An enormous amount, roughly an entire ton of uranium, was produced on a daily basis (Degarmo).
Moving one step forward, the remaining choices are Manganese, Aluminum, Lead, Zinc, Tin, Nickel, Cadmium, and Chromium. At this point, the density can be used to classify since a few of the choices have been removed. Approximately at 25 degrees Celsius, Manganese has a density of 7.44, Aluminum with 2.70, Lead is at 11.35, 7.13 for Zinc, 7.31 for Tin, 8.91 for Nickel, 8.65 for Cadmium, and 7.19 for Chromium, where all of the densities have a unit of g/cm3. Based on information from the experiment sheet, it is affirmed that the calculated density of the unknown metal should be accurate to about 0.1%, although eliminating options based on this would not be reasonable, as lab data is not necessarily consistent every time. On top of density, logic and reasoning can also be used.
The "breeding ratio" is the number of new fissile atoms created for each fission event. This helps us understand how much fissile plutonium-239 is created compared to the amount of fissionable fuel used to produce it. Ideally, the breeding ratio is 1:4 our results have been historically been about 1:2. Two fuel cycles breeder reactors use are: uranium-plutonium (fertile material
Introduction Nuclear waste is produced at every stage of the nuclear fuel cycle, from uranium mining and enrichment, to reactor operation and the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel. Much of this nuclear waste will remain hazardous for hundreds of thousands of years, leaving a poisonous legacy to future generations. The global volume of spent fuel was 220,000 tonnes in the year 2000, and is growing by approximately 10,000 tonnes annually. Despite billions of dollars of investment in various disposal options, the nuclear industry and governments have failed to come up with a feasible and sustainable solution.
The process of “uranium enrichment” was something done to make uranium-235 which was essential to the project because it was the only thing so far that had been used in the testing of nuclear reactions ("The Manhattan Project -- Its Story"). The uranium-235 atom is an isotope which means it has an uneven number of protons and neutrons which also means it is very unstable or “radioactive” making it perfect for starting a nuclear chain reaction (Hook). One process that was being researched at the time was the electromagnetic method which was being experimented on at Berkeley by Ernest O. Lawrence ("The Manhattan Project -- Its Story"). Because of the success of the electromagnetic method, it was recommended that plants using this method be utilized at Site X in Tennessee to produce uranium-235 ("The Manhattan Project -- Its Story"). Site X was built in Tennessee to enhance ordinary uranium to form uranium-235 because the earth yielded little of the highly valuable material (Hook).
As Canadian scientists work with nothing to spare They discovered uranium 235 And became as excited
Humanity needs a lot of energy. It is needed for light, heat, transport and food in everyday life. For many years, the non-renewable resources of fossil fuels such as coal and oil have been the main sources of electricity. Recently, nuclear power is seen as a potential alternative source of great amounts of energy supply. The nuclear power plants that exist today provide approximately 13.5 percent of the world’s electricity (world Nuclear Association, 2013).
Air conditioners, electric cars, televisions, computers—they all have one thing in common. They all consume electricity. As our consumption of electronic gadgets increase, we are depleting Earth’s natural resources at a rate faster than it can replenish. As a result, engineers and scientists have come up with a solution to this issue, albeit with much controversy. Nuclear energy, one of the biggest breakthrough in technological and scientific advancement, is a highly eyed upon solution by many authorities and governments to implement this technology to provide electricity to the masses.
Nuclear energy is one of the several alternative energy sources that have been introduced ever since. Nuclear energy’s various advantages entice many countries to start practicing it. One must consider the amount of energy generated by nuclear fuels, as they are highly-concentrated energy sources. Small uranium pellets, which are the most common form of fuel in generating nuclear energy, can generate as much electricity as a trainload full of coal does. In addition, nuclear power plants do not produce green house gases as byproducts.
One cannot deny that some nuclear waste is produced and that it is radioactive. However, according to the World Nuclear Association in many countries, nuclear waste accounts for just 1% of all toxic wastes. This means that only a small amount of waste is produced and it would be easy to contain. Furthermore, the BBC states that you are able to reprocess nuclear waste and reuse up to 97% of it. This means that waste can be reduced even further and that that supplies of Uranium can be sustained for longer.
It is about 500 times more abundant than gold. Uranium undergoes alpha decay, which produces an alpha particle. This is the least dangerous, as uranium is weakly radioactive. Alpha particles barely penetrate the skin and even clothing can stop them. They can be inhaled and increase a person’s risk of getting lung cancer and other types depending on how you ingest alpha radiation.