PHYSICS RESEARCH

ASSESSMENT TASK
Nuclear Fission
1. Define !e er" Nuclear Fission# $rie a %&ical fission reacion
Nuclear Fission can be described as the breaking up of a heavy nucleus into two
lighter atoms including the release of free neutrons, by action of an accelerated neutron
colliding with the heavy nucleus. A typical nuclear fission reaction is conducted with
Uranium-2! as the target heavy atom.
"hen the neutron comes in contact with the Uranium-2! atom, it is absorbed.
#he absorption of this neutron forms Uranium-2$ %with e&cess energy' causing the
nucleus to undergo deformation, that is, the nucleus begins to oscillate vigorously
forming a neck. #his oscillation becomes so drastic that the nucleus cannot (restabilise)
causing it to break up into two lighter fractions and free neutrons %(Nuclear Force) can no
longer hold nucleus together and electrostatic repulsion takes over'. #he process of
capturing the neutron and splitting happens very *uickly, in a matter of picoseconds
%+&+,
-+2
seconds'. -t is actually beneficial to the success of fission reactions that the
neutron is moving slowly., that is, a slow moving neutron is more likely to be absorbed
than a fast moving one. #his is because the slow moving neutron spends more time in the
vicinity of the nucleus thus has a higher probability of being absorbed %according to de
/roglie0s theory, a slow moving neutron has a longer wavelength thus is more likely to be
captured'. 1uring fission, an incredible amount of energy is released, in the form of heat
and gamma radiation. #he two atoms that result from the fission later release beta
radiation and gamma radiation of their own as well. #he energy released by a single
fission comes from the fact that the fission products and the neutrons, together, weigh
less than the original heavy atom. #he difference in weight is converted directly to energy
at a rate governed by the e*uation 2 3 mc
2
.
2nergy released from each fission
- +$!4e5, 6inetic energy from fission products. - 74e5, 8amma rays
- $4e5, 6inetic 2nergy of the Neutrons - 74e5, 2nergy from
fission products
- $4e5, 8amma rays from fission products - 94e5, Anti-
neutrinos from fission products
'((Me)
'. Na"e !e *o scieniss *!o &la%e+ !e "a,or &ar in !e +isco-er% of
nuclear fission an+ ouline !eir roles
#he two scientists who played a ma:or part in the discovery of nuclear fission
were ;tto <ahn %8erman =hemist > ?hysicist' and @ise 4eitner %Austrian-Awedish
?hysicist'. #hey were the first, following on from 2nrico Fermi)s e&periments, to
discover neutron-induced nuclear fission in uranium.
-n +9B <ahn became keenly interested in the work of the -talian physicist 2nrico
Fermi, who found that when the heaviest natural element, uranium, is bombarded by
neutrons, several radioactive products are formed. Fermi supposed these products to be
artificial elements similar to uranium. <ahn and 4eitner, assisted by the young
Atrassmann, obtained results that at first seemed in accord with Fermi0s interpretation but
then became increasingly difficult to understand. 4eitner fled from 8ermany in Culy
+9D to escape the persecution of Cews by the NaEis, but <ahn and Atrassmann continued
the work. /y the end of +9D, they obtained conclusive evidence, contrary to previous
e&pectation, that one of the products from uranium was a radioactive form of the much
lighter element barium, indicating that the uranium atom had split into two lighter atoms.
<ahn sent an account of the work to 4eitner, who, in cooperation with her nephew ;tto
Frisch, formulated a plausible e&planation of the process, to which they gave the name
Nuclear Fission.
#o e&plain the process 4eitner along with Frisch discovered that there wasn)t
enough energy present in the reaction to chip off enough protons and alpha particles from
uranium to form barium. #hey then began to consider /ohr)s (li*uid drop) model. #hey
considered that if the nucleus was like a li*uid drop, it could become unstable and split in
two which would be forced apart by electrostatic repulsion. 4eitner, with this theory, was
then able to prove the fission of uranium and formation of barium mathematically by the
use of mass defect and the e*uation 2 3 mc
2

.. /uline !o* a fission reacor *or0s an+ !o* !e% are conrolle+.
<eat is produced in a nuclear reactor when neutrons strike Uranium atoms
causing them to fission in a continuous chain reaction. #he heat produced boils the water
in circulation around the reactor core, which is *uickly converted the water in the (Ateam
8enerator) into steam. #he steam drives a steam turbine, which spins a generator to
produce power. After passing through the turbine, the steam is then condensed back to a
li*uid by coolant supplied from the cooling tower and pumped back into the Ateam
8enerator to begin the cycle again.-n a fission reactor the uranium can either be
subcritical, critical or supercritical. (=ritical) mass is the minimum amount of uranium
re*uired to sustain a stable fission reaction. Aubcritical is when the mass is insufficient to
sustain fission and the reaction dies out, and of course supercritical means there is an
e&cess of mass allowing the reaction rate to increase e&ponentially. #he mass of Uranium
in Fission Feactors is initially Aupercritical, this is done so if they want to increase
reaction rate they don)t have to add more uranium, but if left to its own devices without
GcontrolG, the supercritical uranium would eventually overheat and melt.
#o prevent the reaction rate from going too high =ontrol elements, which are
made of materials that absorb neutrons %such as cadmium and boron' , are placed among
the fuel assemblies in the reactor core. "hen the control elements, or control rods as they
are often called, are pulled out of the core, more neutrons are available and the chain
reaction speeds up, producing more heat. "hen they are inserted into the core, more
neutrons are absorbed, and the chain reaction slows or stops, reducing the heat.
#he reactor core itself is composed of four main partsH the Uranium fuel
assemblies, the control rods %slide up and down in between the fuel assemblies in the
reactor core', the coolantImoderator %water flowing through reactor can act as both, or
can be separate elements from the water such as having solid moderators made of
graphite', and the pressure vessel %the container for the core'. Uranium cannot :ust be
thrown into a reactor the way we shovel coal into a furnace. #he fuel rods, containing the
uranium, are carefully bound together into fuel assemblies, each of which contains about
2B, rods. #he assemblies hold the rods apart so that when they are submerged into the
reactor core, water can flow between them, this is the same water that is heated by the
reaction and is pumped to the steam generator to produce steam. #his reactor core
configuration is commonly called a Franklin)s =ore.
#here are several effects that make controlled operation of a reactor relatively
easy. 4ost importantly, some of the neutrons involved in the chain reactions are delayed
because they come from radioactive decay processes. #hese delayed neutrons slow the
reactor0s response to changes, the chain reactions take time to grow stronger and they take
time to grow weaker. As a result, it0s possible for a reactor to e&ceed critical mass briefly
without e&periencing the e&ponentially growing chain reactions that we associate with
nuclear e&plosions.
1. Ho* is neuron scaerin2 use+ as a &ro3e4
Neutron scattering %diffraction' is a process where a beam of neutrons is shot at a
sample, and various properties and results are noted. Neutron scattering can be used to
determine the positions, motions and magnetic properties of solids. 4ost of the beam will
pass through the solid, however, due to the lack of electrostatic repulsion, a significant
number will interact directly with the atom, and bounce away. Using detectors, scientists
can count scattered neutrons, measure their energies and the angles at which they scatter,
and map their final position, with varying intensities. Neutrons are highly penetrating,
and non-destructive probes, that can be used on a wide variety of samples. Neutrons have
spin, and (magnetic moments) which allows for studying of minute magnetic structures,
and the development of magnetic materials. Furthermore, from de /roglie)s matter
waves, the wavelength of a neutron is similar to the atomic spacings, and hence can be
used to determine structural sensitivity and density.
5. Ho* are acceleraors use+ as a &ro3e o su+% !e srucure of
"aer4
Aince the invention of particle accelerators, scientists have been able to use higher
energy particles to discover and e&plain new particles, via techni*ues such as bombarding
nuclei. #hrough use of accelerators, +,,s of particles had been discovered by the +9$,s.
Accelerators such as linear, cyclotrons and synchrotrons utilise changing magnetic and
electric fields to accelerate particles, increasing their energy, which is then directed
toward a target. For e&ample, in Cune 2,,,, gold ions were accelerated to near light
velocities, which resulted in the possibility of a new particle, *uark-gluon plasma.
6. Sae !e 0e% feaures an+ co"&onens of !e san+ar+ "o+el of
"aer
#he Atandard 4odel was formed to e&plain all subatomic interactions e&cept
gravity. #hese areH
- "eak interactions - neutrinos
- Atrong interactions - *uarks
- 24 interactions - hadrons %baryons- *uarks, mesons-2 *uarks' and leptons
#he Atandard 4odel is the combination of two theories of particle physics into a
single framework. #hese are the (electro weak theory) and (*uantum chromo dynamics)
theory. #he standard model incorporates three families of particles, *uarks, leptons and
bosons. 4atter particles are made from *uarks and leptons, while force-carrier particles
are bosons. "ithin these families are several flavours. For *uarks, these are up, down,
strange, charm, top, and bottom. Juarks are the basis of protons and neutrons, where
several *uarks of either K2I or -+I charge add to give the particle. For protons, 2 ups
and + down give a K+ charge. For neutron, + up and 2 down give no charge. @eptons have
three generations of particles being, electron neutrino %,', electron %-+', muon neutrino
%,', muon %-+', tau neutrino %,', and tau %-+'. #he four types of bosons are gravitons
%theoretical', weakons, gluons and photons.
7. E8&lain !o* ra+ioisoo&es are use+ in "e+icine an+ in in+usr%
Fadioisotopes are used in medicine in both diagnosis and therapy. An e&ample of
a radioisotope used in medicine is #echnetium-99m. #c-99m is a metastable %or e&cited'
form of the #c-99 isotope, has a half-life of only a few hours and decays to stable #c-99
via gamma ray emission. <ence hospitals are sent 4olybdenum-99, which decays into
#c-99m. #he #c-99m obtained is then in:ected into the body and used to scan for brain,
bone, liver, spleen, kidney or lung cancer, as well as for blood flow anomalies. As the #c-
99m de-e&cites to #c-99, the emitted gamma radiation is recorded and measured using a
gamma ray camera.
4odern industry uses radioisotopes in a variety of ways to improve productivity
and, in some cases, to gain information that cannot be obtained in any other way. Aealed
radioactive sources are used in industrial radiography, gauging applications and mineral
analysis. Ahort-lived radioactive material is used in flow tracing and mi&ing
measurements. 8amma sterilisation is used for medical supplies, some bulk commodities
and, increasingly, for food preservation. An e&ample of a radioisotope used in industry is
=obalt-$,. =o-$, is used to steriliEe surgical instruments, improve the safety and
reliability of industrial fuel oil burners and to preserve poultry fruits and spices. =o-$, is
an emitter of beta and high energy gamma radiation and has a half life of !.2$ years. =o-
$, is produced by bombarding a lighter nucleus with neutrons until cobalt-$, is created.
#he best nucleus to use is cobalt-!9. -f e&posed to =o-$, can cause severe radiation burns
and even death.
9. Na"e one isoo&e use+ in eac! of !e follo*in2: Me+icine# A2riculure
an+ En2ineerin2 an+ +escri3e !o* !e% are use+.
- A radioisotope used in medicine is Atrontium-D9, -t is a pure beta emitter and has
a half life of !, days. -t is a radio-pharmaceutical that localiEes to actively forming new
bone, such as metastatic bone lesions from prostate and breast cancer. -t provides
effective systemic endo-osseous local radiation therapy to these painful lesions. -t is
however very e&pensive costing upward of L2,,, per dose and can be administered as
fre*uently as every BD hours as most of the dose is e&creted from the body within this
time.
- A radioisotope used in Agriculture is ?hosphorous-2. -t is used to produce high
yielding, disease and weather resistant varieties of crops, to study how fertilisers and
insecticides work, and to improve the productivity and health of domestic animals. ?-2
is a beta emitter and has a half life of +B. days and is a relatively safe isotope since it
does not emit gamma radiation and has a short half life meaning if it manages to get into
the body it will break down pretty *uickly.
- A radioisotope used in engineering is Americum-2B+. Am-2B+ is used in Amoke
detectors, being an alpha emitter, Am-2B+ ionises the air between two parallel plates and
the flow of ions %current' between the plates is constantly monitored. -f there is smoke in
the air, smoke particles are attracted to ions in the air, making them heavier. #his changes
the flow of ions between the plates, which in turn sets off the alarm. Am-2B+ has a half
life of B!D years therefore it allows a smoke detector to operate for an e&ceptionally long
time without fear of failure.
;. Discuss !e si2nificance of !e Man!aan Pro,ec
#he 4anhattan ?ro:ect, the "orld "ar -- effort to develop and construct the
world0s first atomic bomb, represents an e&traordinary era of American and world history
that included remarkable achievements in science and engineering made possible by
innovative partnerships among Federal agencies, universities, and private industriesM and
culminated in a transformation of the global society by ushering in the atomic age.
#he 4anhattan pro:ect was established in response to the threat of the 8ermans
research into the development of an atomic bomb, it was literally a race against time to
see which side would possess nuclear power first, with the allies being the victor. #he
produce of this pro:ect %atomic bomb' allowed the war to be ended sooner than e&pected
with the unconditional surrender of the Capanese after being sub:ected twice over to the
awesome power of the atomic bomb. "ith this single pro:ect modern warfare was
revolutionised bringing a new threat into the world, the threat of Nuclear "ar.
A new level of destruction wasn)t the only thing that was spawned from the
4anhattan pro:ect there was also a new level of creation that was born. #he 4anhattan
?ro:ect paved the way for research and development into Nuclear ?hysics, producing so
many ideas and possibilities. Aoon after the war ended the concept of Nuclear Fission
was e&tended to the energy industry with the development of the Nuclear Fission Feactor,
which allowed the energy released by a fission reaction to be used to produce electricity.
Also the atomic bomb allowed a greater understanding of the behaviour and structure of
matter leading to the use of radioactive material in many industries such as 4edicine,
Agriculture, 2ngineering, -ndustry etc.
1(. <riefl% +iscuss Einseins conri3uion o nuclear fission.
#he contribution that 2instein made to Nuclear Fission was actually *uite
significant, -n fact it was he who caused the 4anhattan ?ro:ect to come into effect.
Ahortly after @ise 4eitner, with the assistance of her nephew ;tto Frisch,
formulated her e&planation for <ahn and Atrassman)s Nuclear Fission e&periment, she
sent a letter to Albert 2instein, who was currently in America, of this incredible finding.
Fealising that 8ermany was very close to being able to develop an atomic bomb, 2instein
sent a letter to ?resident Foosevelt detailing the threat that this new research and
possibility of an atomic bomb presented to the allied war efforts %Nwatchfulness and, if
necessary, *uick actionN on the part of the United Atates in atomic-bomb research'. -n
response to the letter ?resident Foosevelt immediately contributed L,,,,,,,, to research
on Nuclear Fission, thus the 4anhattan ?ro:ect was born.
Although he took no part in the work at @os Alamos, New 4e&ico, and did not
learn that a nuclear-fission bomb had been made until <iroshima was raEed in +9B!,
2instein0s name was emphatically associated with the advent of the atomic age. <e
readily :oined those scientists seeking ways to prevent any future use of the bomb, his
particular and urgent plea being the establishment of a world government under a
constitution drafted by the United Atates, /ritain, and Fussia.


/yH Acott 6eatings