UNIT II.

NUCLEAR CHEMISTRY
Learning Objectives
At the end of this chapter, the student will be able to,
• Differentiate nuclear reactions from chemical reactions.
• Write and balance nuclear reactions.
• Evaluate and predict modes of decomposition and stability of isotopes.
• Describe nuclear fission and fusion processes

Fig. 2.1 One of the most important application of Nuclear Chemistry in archeology is by
utilizing the carbon-14 degradation which scientists use to know how old a fossil was.

Lesson Proper
2.1 Introduction
Nuclear Chemistry is a branch of chemistry that deals with processes involving
substances that undergo reactions and involves the NUCLEUS. Nuclear Chemistry was
somehow different to other chemical reactions we’ve encountered and we will discuss
it in this module.

Fig. 2.2 Subatomic components of an atom

(Source: chemilibretext.org)

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 The inner or central part of the atom was the nucleus. It contains protons and
neutrons (it is also possible that it can only have a proton in some cases) and holds the
identity of the of the atom itself.
We also have the outer part where electrons can be found. The outer part around
the nucleus was referred as the electron cloud region which holds the electrons and,
by looking at an electron tunneling microscopy images (a high-powered microscope
that can “view” an atom), this outer part that resembles a cloud was described and
governed by mathematical probabilities in different orientations.
However, in the following chapters, we will be focusing on the nucleus itself
at it was the responsible for nuclear reactions in contrast to conventional chemical
reactions; it’s reaction types, balancing the nuclides and how this manifest.

2.2 What is a nuclear reaction and how does it differ with a regular chemical
reaction?

A nuclear reaction, as we have roughly defined earlier, is a type of reaction that

involves nucleus. Moreover, when a nuclear reaction happens, a new atom appears (but
not all the time) because we are altering the nuclear components present in a nucleus.
But how does it really differ with a regular chemical reaction in different aspects?
Below was the summary of difference between the nuclear reaction and
conventional chemical reaction.

CHEMICAL REACTION NUCLEAR REACTION

o In a chemical reaction, a bond is formed O
and/or broken (depends on the type of
reaction) to form new type of substances.
O Chemical reactions are dependent on
temperatures, concentration, catalysis and
other thermodynamic and kinetic factors.
o The electrons are the one responsible for
chemical reactions to happen. And this
reaction doesn’t alter the nuclei of an atom.
o May happens at lower energy. (e.g. ambient
temperature)
o The energy involved (produced or
consumed) in the reaction is low.
o Follows the law of conservation of mass
In nuclear reactions, altering of nuclear
components leads to a formation of new
substances.
o Nuclear Reactions doesn’t was affected by
temperature, catalysis and other
thermodynamic and kinetic factors.
o The nucleus itself was the one the
responsible for nuclear reactions to happen.
o Mostly possible at higher energy conditions
(e.g surface of the sun, plasma bodies and
particle accelerators)
o The energy involved in the reaction
(produced or consumed) were very high.
o May not follow the law of conservation of
mass because of relativistic factors. Some
mass maybe converted into energy by
E=mc2.

2.3 Nuclear Stability and Radioactive Decay

A substance undergoing nuclear reaction was superficial to undergo nuclear
reaction if the substance itself has higher potential energy. The basis of this can be

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routed to a higher neutron/proton ratio which leads to higher potential energy.
Generally, substances don’t like higher energy and it tends to reduce the potential
energy it holds by accepting or removing components to relieve some of its constraints,
this process is called the radioactive decay.
The neutron/ proton ratio of an atomic nucleus is the ratio of its number of
neutrons to its number of protons. Among stable nuclei and naturally occurring nuclei,
this ratio generally increases with increasing atomic number (refer to Fig. 3: Nuclear
Stability Belt).
The ideal ratio which possesses low potential energy for a nucleus is equal to
1:1. However, if we look at the stability belt, the ratio shifts from the 1:1 ratio trendline.
This only tells us that when the atom
increases in atomic weight, the nuclear
stability decreases because it tends to deviate
from the 1:1 stability line and this may be also
stated that atoms with higher neutron/proton
ratio tends to undergo nuclear reaction.
From this point, instead only of using
the term reactants and products, we will also
use the term nuclide to talk about a specific
nucleus undergoing nuclear reaction. This
nuclide can be written as:
𝑨
𝒁𝑿

Where: X is the specific nuclide (the

identity of the atom with the respective atomic
number).
A is the mass number (sum of
proton and neutron).
Z is the atomic number.
Fig. 2.3 The nuclear stability belt (Source:
For example, if we’re to write a tritium nu- Chemistry 8th Ed. by Zumdahl, Zumdahl)
clide (a hydrogen isotope), then:

𝟑
𝟏𝑯

From the nuclide expression itself, we can describe the tritium in terms of how
many components it possesses. We can say that it has 1 proton (Z value) and 2 neutrons
(#neutrons = Z – A). The identity of the nuclide depends on the number of protons in
it.

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2.4 Nuclear Reaction
We already defined and differentiate the nuclear reactions earlier. This time, we
will show you how a nuclear reaction is written and how does it happen. Among also
were the type of reaction it undergoes.
A nuclear reaction involves a particular nuclide undergoing changes in its
components. Let’s take carbon-14 (a carbon isotope used in dating fossils etc.).
14 14 0 −
6𝐶 → 7𝑁 + −1𝑒
A carbon-14 is an unstable isotope that tends to undergo radioactive decay
easily to form nitrogen atom. This reaction produces electrons throughout the process.
The nuclear reaction above was a standard nuclear reaction. Some nuclear
reactions may be written in that way. Some can have more than one reactant present
depending on the type of nuclear reaction it undergoes.

2.4.1 Balancing Nuclear Reactions

We mentioned earlier that nuclear reaction doesn’t always follows law of
conservation of mass and you may be wondering what is the point of balancing nuclear
reaction anyway. Unlike chemical reactions, we also deal with law of definite
proportions and that’s why we adapt the STOICHIOMETRIC ratio of reaction, however
in nuclear reactions, the stoichiometric amount of nuclide as the reacting species is not
much as concerned. Nuclear reactions were dominantly expressed with nuclear changes
so, the thing we balance in nuclear reactions was the number of protons and mass
number of the nuclide which reflects the characteristic of the nuclides.
To give you an example, let’s go back to the carbon-14 reaction.

14
6𝐶 → 14
7𝑁 + −10𝑒 −

If you’ve noticed it already, the total mass number and atomic number on both
sides was conserved. The general expression for this is,

∑ 𝑨, 𝒁𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕 = ∑ 𝑨, 𝒁𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒕

14
6𝐶 → 14
7𝑁 + −10𝑒 −
Sum total should be equal both sides.

Sum total should be equal both sides.

To show you more, we have tallied the A and Z of all the components of the reaction.

Reactant Product
Carbon Sum total Nitrogen e- Sum total

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 A 14 14 14 0 14
Z 6 6 7 -1 6

If we look at the sum totals from the reactant and product, we can see that the
nuclei components were totally conserved throughout the reaction. And with this, we
will use this method to balance a nuclear reaction problem.
2.4.2 Types of Radioactive Decay

Exercises: Balance the following nuclear reactions. Fill the designated boxes with the
appropriate value.
1) 42α + ☐7N → 126C + ☐1p

2) 4
2α + ☐4Be → 12
☐C + 11p

☐ 30
3) 13Al + 47α → ☐P + 11p

Radioactive nuclei can undergo decomposition in various ways. These decay

processes fall into two categories: those that involve a change in the mass number of the
decaying nuclide and those that do not.

ALPHA DECAY or ALPHA EMISSION

First mode of radioactive decay is the alpha decay. Alpha decay was characterized by
the emission of alpha particle (α). An alpha particle is a helium nucleus and can be written
as;
𝟒 𝟒
𝟐𝑯𝒆 𝒐𝒓 𝟐𝜶

Example of decay reactions that involve alpha emission was the decay of uranium-
238 to produce thorium-234. Respective alpha decay reaction happens when thorium-234
was formed immediately.

𝟐𝟑𝟖 𝟐𝟑𝟒 𝟒
𝟗𝟐𝑼 → 𝟗𝟎𝑻𝒉 + 𝟐𝜶

𝟐𝟑𝟒 𝟐𝟑𝟎 𝟒
𝟗𝟎𝑻𝒉 → 𝟖𝟖𝑹𝒂 + 𝟐𝜶

Another decay process in which the mass number of the decaying nucleus changes
is spontaneous fission, the splitting of a heavy nuclide into two lighter nuclides with
similar mass numbers. Although this process occurs at an extremely slow rate for most
nuclides, it is important in some cases, such as for californium-254, where spontaneous
fission is the predominant mode of decay.

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 BETA DECAY or BETA EMISSION
The most common decay process in which the mass number of the decaying nucleus
remains constant is β-particle emission. A beta particle has no mass number at all but it
has a Z value of -1. This means that when an atom releases a beta particle, it increases its
Z value by one. Some books express beta particle as electron (because its mass properties
and charge were the same with electron) but for simplicity, we will express beta particle
as β. We can write it as,
𝟎
−𝟏𝜷

Beta particle was seen in the radioactive decay of iodine-131. That is,

𝟏𝟑𝟏 𝟏𝟑𝟏
𝟓𝟑𝑰 → 𝟓𝟒𝑰 + −𝟏𝟎𝜷

Because the value of Z is -1 for the 𝛽 particle, the atomic number for the new nuclide is
greater by 1 than for the original nuclide. Thus, the net effect of 𝛽 -particle production is to change
a neutron to a proton, increasing the Z value by one for the product nuclide.

GAMMA DECAY or GAMMA EMISSION

A gamma ray, or γ-particle, refers to a high-energy photon resulted from the
release of energy from the nucleus particular in nuclides in excited state. This release in
energy eases the potential energy in the nucleus helping the atom to achieve a more “relax”
state.
Frequently, γ- ray production accompanies nuclear decays and particle reactions,
such as in the α-particle decay of uranium-238. For gamma reactions, some books reference
a state by putting an asterisk (*) on a nuclide to symbolize it was on excited state. No
asterisk was assumed to be in ground state.

𝟐𝟑𝟖 ∗ 𝟐𝟑𝟒 𝟒
𝟗𝟐𝑼 → 𝟗𝟎𝑻𝒉 + 𝟐𝜶 + 𝟎𝟎𝜸

POSITRON EMISSION
Positron emission usually manifested at lower band of stability which reflects low
neutron/proton ratio. Positrons (some sources call it as positive electron) were just electrons
but with a positive charge. Positrons were emitted at some nuclear reactions such as that
of sodium-22 (natural occurring sodium has an atomic number of 23 amu).

𝟐𝟐
𝟏𝟏𝑵𝒂 → 𝟎𝟏𝒆 + 𝟐𝟐
𝟏𝟎𝑵𝒆

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ELECTRON CAPTURE
Electron capture is a process in which one of the inner-orbital electrons is captured
by the nucleus, as illustrated by the process

𝟐𝟎𝟏
𝟖𝟎𝑯𝒈
∗
+ −𝟏𝟎𝒆 → 𝟐𝟎𝟏
𝟕𝟗𝑨𝒖 + 𝟎𝟎𝜸

Since the reaction was a “capture”, we expect that an electron is being taken by
the nucleus thus, an electron will be placed at the reactant side. Take note also of the
placement of sub particles. If the sub particle was present at the product, therefore it was
being produced or emitted otherwise, it was being consumed.

Fig. 2.4 Summary of Radioactive Decays (source: opentextbc.ca)

Exercises: Create and write the appropriate nuclear reaction process in the word
problems in the following.

1. Thorium-232 undergoes three cycles of alpha decay.

2. An electron capture happened with an aluminum-25.
3. A beta emission followed by alpha emission of californium - 256

2.4 Nuclear Kinetics

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 Predictive applications were one of the uses of nuclear chemistry. As featured
earlier on the front page, common use of it was in carbon dating. But how it is possible to
compute how old an object was by looking at the carbon-14 content?
Chemical kinetics was pioneered to calculate certain parameters in chemical
reactions such as the rate constant, concentration or amount of a substance before and after
the reaction and the time it takes for the reaction to occur.
Though nuclear chemistry was, somehow, on a different category, chemical kinetic
expressions can also be used to calculate and describe the nuclear reactions.

For simple nuclear kinetic problems, we can use the form of first order kinetics formula.

𝒍𝒏[𝑨] − 𝒍𝒏[𝑨]𝒐 = −𝒌𝒕

Eq.1 natural log form of first order kinetics

Where: [A] = final amount of the nuclide (units are arbitrary)

In nuclear chemistry, sometimes the amount was expressed in mass only (e.g g, mg) or some books
uses concentration units (e.g mol/L, ppm).
[A]o= initial amount of the nuclide
k = rate constant (rate constants are experimentally determined)
t= the time it takes for the reaction to occur

You can also use the formula instead of eq. 1

[𝐴]
= 𝑒 −𝑘𝑡
[𝐴]𝑜

[𝑨] = [𝑨]𝒐 𝒆−𝒌𝒕

Eq.2 Exponential form of first order kinetics

Note: You can use any of the two.

Exercises: Solve the following problems

1. Thorium-232 undergoes three cycles of alpha decay? It started from a 2.6g and then
become 1.23g after 2.65mins. Calculate the rate of decay (k) of thorium-232.
2. How much time will it need for a radioactive iodine-131 to decay from 1.25mg to
0.90mg where its decay rate was calculated to be 0.06825mg/year?

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2.5 Half-Life
The half-life is the time it takes for a starting material to be in a state where it
becomes half of its original amount. The formula for half-life was originally derived from
first-order kinetics formula. To find the half-life,

𝑙𝑛2
𝑡1 =
2 𝑘

Where: t1/2= the half-life time

Exercises: Solve the following problems

1. The half-life of Zn-71 is 2.4 minutes. If one had 100.0 g at the beginning, how many
grams would be left after 7.2 minutes has elapsed?
2. After 24.0 days, 2.00 milligrams of an original 128.0 milligram sample remain.
What is the half-life of the sample?
3. 100.0 grams of an isotope with a half-life of 36.0 hours is present at time
zero. How much time will have elapsed when 5.00 grams remains?

References:
Brown, T. L. (2018). Chemistry: The central science
Zumdahl, S. S., & Zumdahl, S. A. (2010). Chemistry. 8th Ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

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Assessing Learning
Activity 2
Name:______________________________ Score:_________
Course/Year/Section:____________ Date:__________

Directions: Answer the following questions. Write your answer in the space
provided.

I. Problem Solving: Write the corresponding nuclear reaction for the word
problem and complete the missing type of decay they undergo.

a. Cobalt-60 undergoes _____________ and yielded nickel-60

b. In medicinal applications, technetium-99 was the most useful in terms of

radiologic therapy. In a system, technetium-99 undergoes _________ to
form molybdenum-97.

c. What type of radioactive decay a plutonium- 239 undergoes to form a

uranium-235?

d. A curium-241 was transformed into americium-241, what process it

undergoes?

II. Write the Appropriate Nuclear Reaction formula for the following processes.

a. Gallium – 68 undergoes electron capture

b. Copper – 62 undergoes positron emission
c. Francium – 212 undergoes alpha then goes beta decay
d. Antimony – 129 undergoes beta emission

III. Answer the following question and provide nuclear reaction solutions to justify
your answer.

a. Uranium-235 undergoes a series of α - particle and β-particle productions

to end up as lead-207. How many α-particles and β-particles are produced
in the complete decay series?
b. The radioactive isotope 247Bk (berkelium – 247) decays by a series of α -
particle and β -particle productions, taking 247Bk through many
transformations to end up as lead - 207. In the complete decay series, how
many α -particles and β particles are produced?

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 c. The Br-82 nucleus has a half-life of 1.0 x 103 min. If you wanted 1.0 g Br-
82 and the delivery time was 3.0 days, what mass of NaBr should you order
(assuming all of the Br in the NaBr was Br-82)?
d. Iodine-131 is used in the diagnosis and treatment of thyroid disease and has
a half-life of 8.0 days. If a patient with thyroid disease consumes a sample
10. ug 131I, how long will it take for the amount of 131I to decrease to 1/100
of the original amount?
e. The first atomic explosion was detonated in the desert north of Alamogordo,
New Mexico, on July 16, 1945. What fraction of the strontium-90 (t1/2 =
28.9 years) originally produced by that explosion still remains as of July 16,
2009?

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