Here we have a Radioactive Thermoelectric Generator (RTG) that
is powered by Plutonium 238 (238Pu). The...
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Chemistry
Here we have a Radioactive Thermoelectric Generator (RTG) thatis powered by Plutonium 238 (238Pu). The RTG produces1400 Watts. 238Pu decays by alpha-particle emission. Thealpha-particle has 5.593 MeV of kinetic energy. The half life(t1/2) of 238Pu is 87.7 years.
a) Write the nuclear reaction for 238Pu decay
b) Assume all of the kinetic energy is converted to heat. Howmuch 238Pu (in grams) must be present to produce 1400Watts of power?
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a 238Pu 234U alpha particle b wes need to use the kinetic energy per alpha particle to determine how many alpha particles we would need in order to get 1400 W of power Once we know thatwe will use plutionium238s halflife to determine how many alpha particles are emitted per second for a given mass of the isotope Finally we will use the number of emitted alpha particles to determine how many nuclei of plutonium238 youd need to have in the sample So its important to realize here that Watts are equivalent to Joules per second 1 W1 J s1 This means
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