SUBJECT: PHYSICS YEAR LEVEL: FOURTH YEAR

PSSLC COMPETENCY: Demonstrate understanding on nuclear reactions.

Specific Learning Objectives
1. Identify the type of transformation, given a nuclear equation
Knowledge

2. Indicate the new element formed in a nuclear transformation using the periodic table for alpha decay

1. Write equations of nuclear reactions.

Skills
Attitude

ASSESSMENT

1. Tell what nuclear transformation takes place. +

2-3. Complete the nuclear equations : +

4-5. Thorium – 230 ( ) undergoes alpha decay. Write the nuclear equation for such a decay.

STRATEGIES SUPPORT INSTRUCTIONAL

MATERIALS
Routine Activities
Pre-Activity
Review:
1. Discuss briefly:
 Radioactivity
 Three radioactive particles

Motivation:
1. Read a short story and ask questions after. Copy of the Story
 What is the story about?
 What happens when mother uranium decays?
 Do you think it holds true to all radioactive substances?

Activity
1. Have the students work in pairs Activity Sheet (Information from
2. Distribute the Activity Sheet Nuclear Equations – Alpha
3. Set the time limit for the Activity Decay)
Periodic Table of Elements
Analysis
A. Discuss the result of the activity:
1. What was the parent nucleus? Daughter nucleus?
2. Compare the mass number of the parent nucleus with the daughter
nucleus. Is there a change? Describe?
3. Compare the atomic number of the parent nucleus with the
daughter nucleus. Is there a change? Describe.
4. What particle was emitted in the process?
5. Based on the previous lessons, alpha particle is actually the nucleus
of ___?__ atom.

B. Lecturette on
+
 The formulation of the general equation for alpha decay
Where:
R = Chemical Symbol
Z = atomic number
A = mass number
  The amount of energy released can be computed through
Einstein’s equation. (Enrichment)
Abstraction
1. How can you tell the type of transformation in an equation?
2. How will you know the new element formed in nuclear
transformation?
3. Write the nuclear equation when Bi -211 undergoes alpha decay.

Application
 When a nucleus releases an alpha particle, the nucleus also releases
energy. In fact, the energy released by radioactive decay is
responsible, in part, for keeping the interior of the earth hot and in
some places, even molten.
 One widely used application of alpha decay is in smoke detectors.
Two parallel plates are separated by a distance of about 1 cm. A tiny
amount of radioactive material at the center of one of the plates
emits alpha particles, which collide with air molecules. During the
collision, the air molecules are ionized to form positive and negative
ions. The voltage from the battery causes one plate to be positive
and the other negative, so that each plate attracts ions of opposite
charge. As a result there is current in the circuit attached to the
plates. The presence of smoke particles between the plates reduces
the current, since ions that collide with a smoke particle are usually
neutralized. The drop I current that smoke particles cause is used to
trigger the alarm.

Selection for Motivation

One day, in Actinide City, a parent nucleus named Uranium was very sad. In her entire life she was very active
and very unstable that she was no able to notice that she’s fast aging.

Alas, she is slowly decaying but wonder of all wonders she’s changing into a new nucleus. She transformed into
Thorium accompanied by and emission of a particle, named Alpha.

So upon knowing that she is not really gone from this world, Uranium became happy. For her, life is so good
because she can leave behind her legacy.

Answers to the Assessment

1. Alpha transformation or Alpha decay

2. 2.

3. 3.

4. +
 ACTIVITY SHEET

Information from Nuclear Equations (Alpha Decay)

Direction: Below are examples of nuclear reactions. Study the changes in the mass number
and the atomic number of the parent nucleus and the daughter nucleus.

1. + α (alpha particle)
2. + α (alpha particle)
Nucleus Atomic Number Mass Number Particle Emitted
1 Parent
Daughter
2 Parent
Daughter

Guide Questions:
1. Fill in the answers in the table.
2. Compare the mass number of the parent nucleus with the daughter nucleus. Is there a change? Describe?
3. Compare the atomic number of the parent nucleus with the daughter nucleus. Is there a change? Describe.
4. What particle was emitted in the process?
5. Based on the previous lessons, alpha particle is actually the nucleus of ___?__ atom.

Readings:
Alpha Decay.
http://www.btinternet.com/~j.doyle/SR/Emc2/Decay.htm#Alpha%20Decay.
This form of radioactive decay is usually shown using the Greek letter for alpha. Web browsers sometimes have
problems displaying such characters correctly, but it looks like this:

In alpha-decay an atom ejects an alpha particle, which is simply a helium atom without any electrons. In doing so the
parent atom decays and emits an alpha particle, and thereby transforms (or 'decays') into an atom with a mass number
4 less and atomic number 2 less. An alpha particle is the same as a helium-4 nucleus, and both mass number and atomic
number are the same.

An example of this is a uranium-238 atom decaying into into a thorium-234 atom and an alpha particle (helium-4
nucleus, i.e. 2 protons and 2 neutrons). A schematic diagram illustrates this:

This type of decay occurs naturally in uranium and is an example of "spontaneous decay".
So what has this got to do with E = mc 2?
The uranium atom doesn't just break apart. As it decays, each of the two resulting elements (the thorium and α-
particle) fly apart at high speed. In other words they both have kinetic energy. Perhaps the energy came from the fact
that the two particles were held together in such a way that they would fly apart given the chance. However, it is
possible to measure the mass of the original uranium atom and the masses of the two resultant particles. This is done by
measuring the momentum of each particle as it strikes a sensor (although that is a somewhat simplified explanation it is
good enough for our purposes). When these measurements are taken it is found that the total mass of the two smaller
particles is less than the mass of the original uranium particle. Some mass must have been turned into (mostly kinetic)
energy, in accordance with E = mc 2.