Question

Which of the following atomic symbols represents an isotope of:

A. ^12C
B. ^14C
C. ^16C
D. ^18C

Answer 1

The correct isotope of carbon is B. ¹´C as it has the same number of protons (6) but a different number of neutrons compared to carbon-12.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student is asking about isotopes of carbon (C). All carbon atoms have 6 protons, which is denoted by the atomic number, 6. Isotopes differ in their number of neutrons. Carbon-12, represented as ¹²C, has 6 protons and 6 neutrons. The other isotopes provided in the choices, ¹´C, ¹⁶C, and ¹₈C, have more neutrons but the same number of protons. Therefore, B. ¹´C is an isotope of carbon since it has the same number of protons but a different number of neutrons compared to ¹²C.

Answer 2

The isotope of carbon, carbon-14, is symbolized as ¹⁴C and has 6 protons and 8 neutrons, making it an isotope of the carbon-12 (¹²C) due to the different number of neutrons.

Step-by-step explanation:

The atomic symbols given in the question represent different isotopes of the element carbon, which is denoted by the symbol 'C'. Isotopes are variations of the same element that have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons.

Here, ¹²C is known as carbon-12, which has 6 protons and 6 neutrons. This is the most abundant isotope of carbon. An isotope of carbon, such as carbon-14, symbolized as ¹⁴C, has 6 protons and 8 neutrons. In general, when looking for an isotope of an element, we are interested in atoms that have the same atomic number but different mass numbers.

So the answer to the question 'Which of the following atomic symbols represents an isotope of: A. ¹²C B. ¹⁴C C. ¹⁶C D. ¹⁸C' is B. ¹⁴C, which is commonly referred to as carbon-14.