Assignment 04

Kinetics of Radioactive Decay

Submitted By
Faraz Nabeel Taj

Registration No.
L1F22MPCM0015

Submitted to
Dr. Akhyar Farrukh

Course Code
CH652
Course title
Radiation Chemistry

Submission date
June 15, 2023

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 Table of Contents
Question No. 01...............................................................................................................................3

Kinetics of First order decay............................................................................................................3

Explanation and Graphical Representation of Equations............................................................4

Equations of straight-line.........................................................................................................5

Exponential Equations.............................................................................................................5

Half-life........................................................................................................................................6

Question N0. 02...............................................................................................................................8

Initial Activities...........................................................................................................................8

Initial Activity of Shorter-lived Nuclide..................................................................................8

Initial Activity of Longer-lived Nuclide..................................................................................8

Half-lives.....................................................................................................................................9

Half-life of Shorter-lived Nuclide...........................................................................................9

Half-life of Longer-lived Nuclide............................................................................................9

Decay Constants..........................................................................................................................9

Decay Constant of Shorter-lived Nuclide................................................................................9

Decay Constant of Longer-lived Nuclide................................................................................9

Shorter-lived Nuclide.................................................................................................................10

Longer-lived Nuclide.................................................................................................................10

References..................................................................................................................................10

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 Question No. 01
Explain all different forms of equations and their graphical representations to study the
first order kinetics of decay.

Kinetics of First order decay

First-order kinetics of decay refers to a type of chemical reaction in which the rate of decay of a
substance is proportional to the concentration or quantity of that substance. In other words, the
decay process follows a first-order rate law. In a first-order decay reaction, the rate of decay
decreases exponentially over time. This means that the rate of decay is highest at the beginning
and gradually decreases as the concentration or quantity of the substance decreases. The decay
occurs independently of the presence or concentration of any other reactants. Consider we have a
nuclide ‘N’ which disintegrates into daughter nuclide with the passage of time which can be
represented by following equation:

−dN
∝ N (1)
dt

- sign in equation (1) indicates the decrease in the concentration/number of parent nuclides (N)
with the passage of time (t). Hence equation (1) states that the rate of disintegration of parent
nuclide (N) into daughter nuclides is proportional to the concentration or the number of parent
nuclides.

−dN
=λN (2)
dt

Equation two is obtained by the removal of the sign of proportionality. In this equation λ
represents the decay constant. Equation (2) can be rearranged to solve it.

−dN
=λ dt(3)
N

Now we will integrate the equation (3)

dN
−∫ =λ ∫ dt (4)
N

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By multiplying equation 4 with (-)

dN
∫ N
=− λ∫ dt

ln N =−λt +Constant (5)

At time t = 0 and N = No

ln N o =−λ (0)+ Constant

ln N o =Constant (6)

Put the value of constant from equation (6) in equation (5)

ln N =−λt + ¿ ln N o (7)

ln N −¿ ln N o =−λt

N
ln =−λt (8)
No

Take the anti-log of equation (8)

N − λt − λt
=e ∨N =N o e (9)
No

The activity of a radioactive substance is defined as its decay rate hence, it is proportional to N
too. It can also the represented as:

ln A=−λt + ¿ ln A o (10)

And

− λt
A=A o e (11)

Explanation and Graphical Representation of Equations

We have four equations that can be used to study the first-order decay, these are:

ln N =−λt + ¿ ln N o (7)

ln A=−λt + ¿ ln A o (10)

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 −λt
N=N o e (9)

− λt
A=A o e (11)

Equations of straight-line
Equation 7 and 10 are straight-line equations (y = -mx + c) with intercept. Equation 7 can be
represented graphically as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1: Graphical representation of equation 7 and 10

Equation 7 and 10 can be used to calculate the initial concentration of nuclides (N) and the initial
activity of radioactive nuclides respectively, by using the intercept value from the graph. As:

N o =Anti log(ln N o )

A o= Anti log (ln Ao )

Moreover, the slope can also help us to calculate the decay constant of a specific radioactive
nuclide. The decay constant, denoted by the symbol "λ" (lambda), is a fundamental parameter
used in the context of radioactive decay or decay processes governed by first-order kinetics. It
represents the probability of decay per unit of time for a radioactive substance or the rate of
decay for a substance undergoing first-order decay.

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Exponential Equations
Equation 9 and 11 are exponential equations that can also be used to study the first-order decay
of radioactive nuclides. Graphically these equations are represented in Figure 2.

Figure 2: Graphical representation of equation 9 and 11

Equation 9 and 11 show the exponential relationship between the radioactivity/Number of

nuclides with time. It can help us to calculate the half-life of radioactive nuclides. This
relationship helps us to calculate the radioactivity after several half-lives of the radioactive
nuclides using the following equation.

Ao
Radioactivity after ' n ' number of half −life = n
2

Half-life
In radioactive decay, the half-life is the time it takes for half of the radioactive atoms in a sample
to undergo radioactive decay and transform into a different element or isotope. It is a
characteristic property of each radioactive isotope and is constant for that particular isotope. The
half-life can range from fractions of a second to billions of years, depending on the isotope.
Equation 8 can be used to calculate the half-life of radioactive nuclide.

N
ln =−λt (8)
No

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 1
Half-life (t ¿ ¿ )¿ is defined as the time in which half of the initial radioactive nuclides decay o
2

No
N=
2

By putting this value in equation 8, we obtain

No
2
ln =−λ t 1
No 2

1
ln =−λ t 1
2 2

ln 1−ln 2=−λ t 1
2

−ln 2=−λ t 1
2

−ln 2=−λ t 1
2

ln 2=λ t 1
2

2.303 log 2= λ t 1
2

0.693=λ t 1
2

0.693
=t 1
λ 2

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 Question N0. 02
The counting rates listed below were obtained when the activity of a certain radioactive
sample was measured at different times. Plot the decay curve on semi-log paper and
determine the initial activities, half-lives, and decay constants of each component present in
the radioactive mixture. Differentiate the longer-lived and shorter-lived component.

Activity
Activity
Sr. Time in Hours Total activity Shorter Lived
Longer Lived
No. (t) (At) (At – AL)
(Al)
(As)
1 0.0 19100 9600 9500
2 0.5 14500 8250 6250
3 1.0 11410 7000 4410
4 1.5 9080 6200 2880
5 2.0 7345 5250 2095
6 3.0 4985 3950 1035
7 4.0 3500 2900 600
8 5.0 2520 2200 320
9 6.0 1835 1650 185
10 8.0 985 985 0
11 10 530 530 0
12 12 290 290 0

Initial Activities
Initial Activity of Shorter-lived Nuclide
8000

Initial Activity of Longer-lived Nuclide

9600

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Half-lives
Half-life of Shorter-lived Nuclide
Initial activity
¿
2

80 0 0
=40 00
2

Half-life = 1.2 Hours

Half-life of Longer-lived Nuclide

Initial activity
¿
2

9600
=4 800
2

Half-life = 2.4 Hours

Decay Constants
Decay Constant of Shorter-lived Nuclide
0.693
t 1=
2
λ

0.693
λ=
t1
2

0.693
λ=
1.2

λ=0.5775

Decay Constant of Longer-lived Nuclide

0.693
λ=
t1
2

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 0.693
λ=
2.4

λ=0.28875

Shorter-lived Nuclide
Shorter-lived nuclides: These are radioactive isotopes with relatively short half-lives, typically
ranging from fractions of a second to a few minutes, hours, or days. They exhibit rapid
radioactive decay and are often associated with highly energetic or unstable atomic nuclei.

Longer-lived Nuclide
These are radioactive isotopes with longer half-lives, which can range from thousands to millions
or billions of years. These nuclides decay at a much slower rate compared to shorter-lived ones.

References
Atkins, P., & de Paula, J. (2010). Physical Chemistry. Oxford University Press.
Faure, G., & Mensing, T. M. (2005). Isotopes: Principles and Applications (3rd ed.). Wiley.
Krane, K. S. (1987). Introductory Nuclear Physics. Wiley.
National Research Council. (2007). Nuclear Physics: Exploring the Heart of Matter. National
Academies Press.

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