Question

4. Which of the following is the most stable isotope?

Polonium-210
Uranium-237
Francium-227
Plutonium-238
Half-life
(hr)
3,310
162
0.04
768,000
A. Polonium-210
B. Uranium-237
C. Francium-227
D. Plutonium-238

Answer 1

D. Plutonium-238 is the most stable isotope

Further explanation

Radioactivity is the process of unstable isotopes to stable isotopes by decay, by emitting certain particles (such as alpha (α), beta (β), gamma (γ) particles)

General formulas used in decay:

`\large {\boxed {\bold {N_t = N_0 (\frac {1} {2}) ^ {t / t \frac {1} {2}}}}`

T = duration of decay

t 1/2 = half-life

N₀ = the number of initial radioactive atoms

Nt = the number of radioactive atoms left after decaying during T time

Half-life shows the time it takes for an atom to get half of its initial mass (to decay to half of its initial mass)

The longer the half-life indicates the stability of the atom

Half-life (hr) of isotopes :

Polonium-210 : 3,310

Uranium-237 : 162

Francium-227 : 0.04

Plutonium-238 : 768,000

The half-life value above shows that Plutonium-238 has the longest time, making it the most stable