Nuclear reactions, 122 balanced equations representing

Nuclear reactions can be represented by balanced equations in which the focus is on mass number and atomic number balance on each side. Symbols are used in nuclear equations that make it convenient to balance mass and atomic numbers. 

Most nuclear reactions involve the breaking apart of the nucleus into two or more different elements or subatomic particles. If we know all but one of the particles, then the unknown particle can be determined by balancing the nuclear equation. When chemical equations are balanced, we add coefficients to ensure that there are the same number of each type of atom on both the left and right of the reaction arrow. However, in order to balance nuclear equations we ensure that there is the same sum of both mass numbers and atomic numbers on the left and right of the reaction arrow. Recall that we can represent a specific isotope of an element by the following symbolization ... 

Back on Earth, however, chemical reactions are everywhere in our daily lives. We rely on chemical reactions for everything from powering a car to making toast. In this chapter, you will learn how to write balanced chemical equations for these reactions. You will look for patterns and similarities between the chemical equations, and you will classify the reactions they represent. As well, you will learn how to balance and classify equations for nuclear reactions. 

Write balanced equations that represent the following nuclear reactions. 

In chemical reactions, atoms in molecules and ions are rearranged, but matter is neither created nor destroyed, and atoms are not changed into other atoms. In earlier chapters, we learned to write balanced chemical equations to represent chemical reactions. Such equations must show the same total number of atoms of each kind on both sides of the equation and the same total charge on both sides of the equation. In a nuclear reaction, a different kind of transformation occurs, one in which a proton can change into a neutron, or a neutron can change into a proton, but the total number of nucleons remains the same. This leads to two requirements for the equation for a nuclear reaction ... 

You can represent nuclear changes using equations, just as you do for chemical reactions. The equations will look similar in most ways to those you already know how to write and balance. The reactants will be on the left and products on the right, following an arrow. However, now you will be considering the nuclei of elements as reactants and products. 

Balance the following equations, which represent nuclear reactions in the uranium-238 decay series. 

Write the balanced equation for the nuclear reaction 26Fe(d,a)2sMn, where d represents the deuterium nucleus (that is, iH). 

Because gamma rays have no mass or atomic numbers, they do not enter into the balancing process of nuclear reactions. However, they do represent energy and should be included in balanced equations when they are known to be emitted. 

Nuclear reactions are of two t)q)es, radioactive decay and nuclear bombardment. Such reactions are represented by nuclear equations, each nucleus being denoted by a nuclide symbol. The equations must be balanced in charge (subscripts) and in nucleons (superscripts). 

The reactions that we discuss in this chapter will be represented by nuclear equations. An equation of this type uses nuclear symbols such as those written above in other respects it resembles an ordinary chemical equation. A nuclear equation must be balanced with respect to nuclear charge (atomic number) and nuclear mass (mass number). To see what that means, consider an equation that we will have a lot more to say about later in this chapter ... 

Nuclear transmutations are represented by nuclear equations. Nuclear equations show the change in the nucleus as well as the particle emitted during the decay process. Just like chemical equations, these equations must follow the Law of Conservation of Mass and the Law of Conservation of Charge. That is, they are balanced by equating the sum of mass numbers on both sides of a reaction equation and the sum of atomic numbers on both sides of a reaction equation. 

The superscripts represent the mass numbers, and the (optional) subscripts represent the atomic numbers or charges. Knowing that the superscripts and subscripts must balance allows us to deduce one species involved in a reaction if all the others are given. The process is often called balancing a nuclear equation. ... 

A properly written chemical equation must contain properly written formulas and must be balanced. If the reaction represents a closed system, as is usually the case, then the law of mass conservation tells us that no mass can be gained or loss during the reaction. Furthermore, if no nuclear decay is occurring, the number of atoms of each element must remain constant. That is, there will be same number of each type of atom on the left and right hand side of the equation. 

Write the balanced nuclear equation for the reaction represented by the diagram shown here. [Section 21.2]... 

The scene below represents a reaction (with neutrons gray and protons purple) that occurs during the lifetime of a star, (a) Write a balanced nuclear equation for the reaction, (b) If the mass difference is 7.7X10 2 amu, find the energy (kJ) released. 

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