Question

The Chernobyl Incident was the worst nuclear disaster in modern history. In 1986, a combination of a design flaw and improper safety procedures caused a meltdown in Reactor 4, which housed 3600 kgs of Plutonium-239 whose half-life is 24,400 years. Current safety procedures estimate that a "safe" amount of Plutonium-239 is 279! That is, the area around Chernobyl will be habitable when the original amount of nuclear fuel is reduced to 27g. When will this happen? Summarize your result in a complete sentence.

a) Chernobyl will be habitable in 24,400 years.
b) Chernobyl will be habitable in 27 years.
c) The question does not provide enough data to answer.
d) The timeline for Chernobyl's habitability depends on external factors.

Answer 1

Chernobyl will be habitable in approximately 27 years.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Chernobyl Incident was the worst nuclear disaster in modern history. In 1986, a combination of a design flaw and improper safety procedures caused a meltdown in Reactor 4, which housed 3600 kgs of Plutonium-239 whose half-life is 24,400 years. The current amount of Plutonium-239 considered safe is 279. To determine when Chernobyl will be habitable, we need to find when the original amount of nuclear fuel is reduced to 27g. Using the concept of half-life, we can calculate this time:

Plutonium-239 has a half-life of 24,400 years. This means that in 24,400 years, half of the original amount of Plutonium-239 will decay. In order to find when the original amount is reduced to 27g, we can set up the following equation:

3600 kg / (2^(t/24,400)) = 27 g

By solving this equation, we can find the value of t, which represents the time in years. Therefore, the answer to the question is that Chernobyl will be habitable in approximately 27 years.