Nuclear Chemistry

JSS/02242022
Nuclear
chemistry
• Nuclear chemistry is the sub-
field of chemistry dealing with
radioactivity, nuclear processes,
and transformations in the
nuclei of atoms, such as nuclear
transmutation and nuclear
properties.
• It includes the study of the
production and use of
radioactive sources for a range
of processes.
Nucleus
• The nucleus is a collection of
particles called protons, which
are positively charged, and
neutrons, which are electrically
neutral.
• Protons and neutrons are in
turn made up of particles
called quarks.
• The chemical element of an
atom is determined by the
number of protons, or the
atomic number, Z, of the
nucleus.
Balancing nuclear
reactions
• The sum of the mass
numbers of the reactants
equals the sum of the mass
numbers of the products.
• The sum of the charges of the
reactants equals the sum of
the charges of the products.
Balancing nuclear reactions
• Naturally occurring thorium-232 • Zirconium-86 undergoes
undergoes α decay.

➢Parent side → daughter side
➢Mass number: 232 = 4 + A; A = 228
➢Atomic number: 90 = 2 + Z; Z = 88
➢Element: Ra
➢Mass number: 86 + 0 = A; A = 86
➢Atomic number: 40 -1 = Z; Z = 39
➢Element: Y
Rate law
• The rate of radioactive decay is first
order we can say: r = k[N]1, where
• r is a measurement of the rate of
decay
• k is the first order rate constant for
the isotope
• N is the amount of radioisotope at
the moment when the rate is
measured
• A first-order reaction can be defined
as a chemical reaction in which the
reaction rate is linearly dependent on
the concentration of only one
reactant.
Radioactive
decay series
• In nuclear science, the decay chain
refers to a series of radioactive
decays of different radioactive
decay products as a sequential
series of transformations.
• It is also known as a "radioactive
cascade".
• Example of a decay series:
• Uranium-238 → Lead-206
• Uranium-238 → Uranium-234
→Thorium-230 → Radium-226 →
Radon-222
Nuclear
transmutations
• Transmutation or nuclear
transmutation is a process that
involves a change in the
nucleus of an atom.
• When the number of protons
in the nucleus of an atom
changes, the identity of that
atom changes as it is turned
into another element or
isotope.
• This transmutation process can
be either natural or artificial.
Isotope
tracers
• Isotopic tracer, any
radioactive atom detectable
in a material in a chemical,
biological, or physical system
and used to mark that
material for study, to observe
its progress through the
system, or to determine its
distribution.
• Radioisotopes can be
detected in quantities as
small as a few atoms.
Ionizing
radiations
• Ionizing radiation is a form of
energy that acts by removing
electrons from atoms and
molecules of materials that
include air, water, and living
tissue.
• Ionizing radiation can travel
unseen and pass through
these materials.
• It is on the right side of the
electromagnetic spectrum in
the figure below.
Applications of ionizing radiations
Nuclear fusion
• Nuclear fusion is a reaction in which two
or more atomic nuclei are combined to
form one or more different atomic nuclei
and subatomic particles.
• The difference in mass between the
reactants and products is manifested as
either the release or the absorption of
energy.
• Process by which nuclear reactions
between light elements form heavier
elements (up to iron).
• In cases where the interacting nuclei
belong to elements with low atomic
numbers (e.g., hydrogen [atomic number
1] or its isotopes deuterium and tritium),
substantial amounts of energy are
released.
Nuclear fission
• Nuclear fission is a reaction in
which the nucleus of an atom splits
into two or more smaller nuclei.
• Subdivision of a heavy atomic
nucleus, such as that of uranium or
plutonium, into two fragments of
roughly equal mass
• The fission process often produces
gamma photons, and releases a
very large amount of energy even
by the energetic standards of
radioactive decay.
Laboratory Activity: Google: Lab experiment on half life/
nuclear chemistry
Laboratory Activity: Video: Radioactive Decay/
Introductory Chemistry – Lecture & Lab
Nuclear Chemistry
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