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Lecture 5 - Radioactivity - 2 - Decay Chains
Lecture 5 - Radioactivity - 2 - Decay Chains
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International Atomic Energy Agency Day 1 – Lecture 5
Objective
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Content
Secular equilibrium
Transient equilibrium
Case of no equilibrium
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Types of Radioactive Equilibrium
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Types of Radioactive Equilibrium
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Sample Radioactive Series Decay
90
Sr 90
Y 90
Zr
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Differential Equation for
Radioactive Series Decay
dNY
= Sr NSr - Y NY
dt
The instantaneous rate of change of Y-90 is made up
of two terms: the production rate, which is equal to
the Sr-90 decay rate; and the rate of loss, which is
the decay rate of Y-90.
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Differential Equation for
Radioactive Series Decay
SrNSr
o
NY(t) = (e - Sr t
- e - Y
t
)
Y - Sr
Recall that Sr NoSr = AoSr which equals the
initial activity of 90Sr at time t = 0
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General Equation for
Radioactive Series Decay
Y SrNSr
o
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Secular Equilibrium
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Secular Equilibrium
SrNSr = YNY
ASr = AY
Decay of
226
Ra to 222Rn
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Sample Problem 1
226
Ra (half-life 1600 years) decays to 222Rn (half-
life 3.8 days). If initially there is 100 µCi of 226Ra in
a sample and no 222Rn, calculate how much 222Rn
is produced:
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Solution to Sample Problem
dNRn
= Ra NRa - Rn NRn
dt
Solving:
RaNRa
NRn(t) = (1 - e-Rnt)
Rn
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Solution to Sample Problem
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Transient Equilibrium
D P NP
DN D =
D - P
For the case of transient equilibrium, the general
equation for radioactive series decay reduces to
the above equation.
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Transient Equilibrium
AP D
AD =
D - P
Expressing it in terms of
activities of parent and
decay product.
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Transient Equilibrium
D
ln
P
tmD =
D - P
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Transient Equilibrium
Example of
Transient Equilibrium
132
Te Decays to 132I
Te-132 - 78.2 hr half life
I 132 - 2.2 hr half life
Note that:
I-132 reaches a maximum activity,
after which it appears to decay with
the half-life of the parent Te-132.
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Sample Problem
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Solution to Sample Problem
Tc
ln
Mo
a) tmTc =
Tc - Mo
Tc = 0.693/(6 hr) = 0.12 hr-1
Mo = 0.693/(66 hr) = 0.011 hr-1
0.12
ln 0.011
tmTc = = 21.9 hrs
0.12 – 0.011
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Solution to Sample Problem
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Solution to Sample Problem
(0.12)(100 mCi)(0.86)
ATc(t) = (e-(0.011)(21.9) - e-(0.12)(21.9))
(0.12 – 0.011)
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Solution to Sample Problem
The maximum
activity of 99mTc is
achieved at 21.9
hours which is
nearly 1 day.
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Types of Radioactive Equilibrium
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No Equilibrium
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Summary
Activity defined and units discussed
Decay constant defined
Half-life defined - relationship to decay
constant
Radioactive decay equation derived
Mean life derived - relationship to half-life
Secular equilibrium was defined
Transient equilibrium was defined
Case of no equilibrium was defined
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Where to Get More Information
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