Chemistry Name: Period:

Nuclear Chemistry Worksheet

Practice Problems

1. Two isotopes of radon are radon-226 and radon-222. Describe how they are different?

2. Cobalt (Co), Krypton (Kr), and Radon (Rn) are elements in the Periodic Table. Which one or ones are
likely to experience radioactive decay? Why?

3. Lab coats and glove provide shielding from which types of radiation?

4. Write the symbols for alpha, beta and gamma particles.

5. The nucleus of an atom of radioactive I-131 used in thyroid imaging contains how many protons?
Electrons? Neutrons?

6. What is the product of the alpha decay of Rn-220?

7. When an alpha particle is released in nuclear decay, describe what happens to the mass number of the
nucleus undergoing decay.

8. What particle is missing in the following bombardment reaction?

Al-27 + ? ---> 10n + P-30

9. What particle is released when Ga-75 decays to Ge-75?

10. Iodine-131 has a half-life of 8 days. How many grams of I-131 in a 4.0-g sample remain after 24 days?

11. Phosphorus-32 has a half-life of 14 days. How long will it take for the P-32 sample to decay to one-
fourth of its original level?

12. Balance the following nuclear reactions by finding the missing atom or particle.

226
A. Ra  22Rn +

131
B. I  131Xe +

C.
185
Au  + 4
α

D.
238
U + 4
α

24 0 -
E. Na  + e