What is the difference between uranium-238 and 235?
The difference between the three isotopes is the number of neutrons present in the nucleus. U-238 has 4 more neutrons than U-234 and three more neutrons than U-235. U-238 is more stable thus being more abundant naturally. U-235 is used as fuel in nuclear reactors and/or weapons.
What percentage of uranium is uranium-235 compared to uranium-238?
U-235 is the main fissile isotope of uranium. Natural uranium contains 0.7% of the U-235 isotope. The remaining 99.3% is mostly the U-238 isotope which does not contribute directly to the fission process (though it does so indirectly by the formation of fissile isotopes of plutonium).
Do uranium-238 and uranium-235 have different half lives?
Though uranium is highly associated with radioactivity, its rate of decay is so low that this element is actually not one of the more radioactive ones out there. Uranium-238 has a half-life of an incredible 4.5 billion years. Uranium-235 has a half-life of just over 700 million years.
What is the difference between uranium-238 uranium-235 uranium 234 and uranium 239?
When we use uranium 234 in a nuclear reactor, we can observe that both uranium 234 and 238 tend to capture a neutron, followed by conversion into uranium 235 and plutonium 239, respectively. The conversion of uranium 234 into uranium 235 occurs at a greater rate than the conversion of uranium 238 to plutonium 239.
Why is uranium-235 used instead of 238?
1 Answer. U- 238 does not undergo fission with lower-energy neutrons, while U- 235 does.
Which isotope has the greater number of protons uranium-235 or uranium-238?
The most stable isotope of uranium, U-238, has an atomic number of 92 (protons) and an atomic weight of 238 (92 protons plus 146 neutrons). The isotope of uranium of greatest importance in atomic bombs, U-235, though, has three fewer neutrons.
What percentage of uranium is 238?
99.284%
Around 99.284% of natural uranium’s mass is uranium-238, which has a half-life of 1.41×1017 seconds (4.468×109 years, or 4.468 billion years). Due to its natural abundance and half-life relative to other radioactive elements, 238U produces ~40% of the radioactive heat produced within the Earth.
Why U-235 is more fissile than U-238?
U- 238 has an even mass, and odd nuclei are more fissile because the extra neutron adds energy – more than what is required to fission the resulting nucleus. because of the large amount of energy needed, U- 238 will not normally undergo fission in a nuclear reactor.
What is U 239 in what ways is it different from U-238?
In what ways is it different from U-238? U-239 is an isotope of uranium. It has one more neutron in the nucleus than U-238.
Why uranium-238 is not used in nuclear fission however it is much more abundant in natural uranium?
The much more abundant uranium-238 does not undergo fission and therefore cannot be used as a fuel for nuclear reactors. However, if uranium-238 is bombarded with neutrons (from uranium-235, for example), it absorbs a neutron and is transformed into uranium-239.
What percentage of natural uranium is U-235?
0.7 percent
Uranium containing the relative concentrations of isotopes found in nature (0.7 percent uranium-235, 99.3 percent uranium-238, and a trace amount of uranium-234 by mass).
Is U 235 or U-238 more radioactive why quizlet?
U-235 is more radioactive because it has more electrons than U-238.
Which is more radioactive U-235 or U-238 Why?
In general, uranium-235 and uranium-234 pose a greater radiological health risk than uranium-238 because they have much shorter half-lives, decay more quickly, and are thus “more radioactive.” Because all uranium isotopes are primarily alpha emitters, they are only hazardous if ingested or inhaled.