What happens when polonium-212 undergoes alpha decay?

Explanation: Polonium-212 undergoes alpha decay to produce lead-208, which means that it gives off alpha radiation, i.e. alpha particles.

What is the formula for alpha decay?

In the alpha decay of U238 (Equation 17.3. 1), both atomic and mass numbers are conserved: mass number: 238=4+234. atomic number: 92=2+90.

What is the alpha decay of polonium?

lead-206
alpha decay Thus polonium-210 (mass number 210 and atomic number 84, i.e., a nucleus with 84 protons) decays by alpha emission to lead-206 (atomic number 82).

What is the alpha decay of polonium 214?

Pb-210
Po-214 decays by alpha emission mainly to the Pb-210 ground state level.

Which type of nuclear radiation has the most penetrating power?

Gamma rays
Gamma rays have the most penetrating powers of all three radiation sources.

Why does the polonium Po become lead Pb after a decay?

Polonium-211 is a very unstable isotope that will undergo alpha decay very quickly. The atomic mass is reduced by four from 211 to 207, and the atomic number is reduced by two from 84 to 82. The atom is therefore changed from polonium to lead.

What is alpha decay example?

Alpha decay. An example of this decay occurs in the uranium-238 nucleus that decays into thorium-234 nucleus. Alpha particle has a relatively large mass, positive electric charge, and poor radiation penetration, and it can be stopped by a paper sheet (Ilem-Ozdemir and Asikoglu, 2012).

What is the main source of alpha decay?

Alpha particles come from the decay of the heaviest radioactive elements, such as uranium, radium and polonium. Even though alpha particles are very energetic, they are so heavy that they use up their energy over short distances and are unable to travel very far from the atom.

Why is it called polonium 210?

Due to the short half-life of all its isotopes, its natural occurrence is limited to tiny traces of the fleeting polonium-210 (with a half-life of 138 days) in uranium ores, as it is the penultimate daughter of natural uranium-238. Polonium was named after Marie Curie’s homeland of Poland.

What is the alpha decay of Rn 222?

polonium-218
Radon-222 itself alpha decays to polonium-218 with a half-life of approximately 3.82 days, making it the most stable isotope of radon. Its final decay product is stable lead-206.

Which is nuclear equation describes the alpha decay of polonium 210?

The nuclear equation that describes the alpha decay of Polonium-210 can be written like this: 210 84 P o → 206 82 P b +4 2 H e Po-210 has 84 protons and 126 neutrons in its nucleus. During alpha decay, an α-particle, which is essentially a Helium-4 nucleus, is emitted by the nucleus.

What kind of radiation is produced by polonium 212?

Alpha radiation. Polonium-212 undergoes alpha decay to produce lead-208, which means that it gives off alpha radiation, i.e. alpha particles. An alpha particle, α, is simply the nucleus of a helium-4 atom, which means that it contains

What happens to the helium-4 nucleus during alpha decay?

During alpha decay, an α-particle, which is essentially a Helium-4 nucleus, is emitted by the nucleus. Since the Helium-4 nucleus has 2 protons and 2 neutrons, the alpha decay process will cause the atomic number to decrease by 2 and the atomic mass to decrease by 4. Nuclear transmutation takes place after an aplha decay,…

Why does polonium have no stable isotopes?

Polonium has no stable isotopes, meaning they all experience nuclear decay but only some undergo alpha decay. Alpha decay occurs when the nucleus ejects an alpha particle (identical to a helium nucleus) made of two protons and two neutrons.