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The Bateman equation predicts the relative quantities of all the isotopes that compose a given decay chain once that decay chain has proceeded long enough for some of its daughter products to have reached the stable (i.e., nonradioactive) end of the chain. A decay chain that has reached this state, which may require billions of years, is said ...
In nuclear physics, the Bateman equation is a mathematical model describing abundances and activities in a decay chain as a function of time, based on the decay rates and initial abundances. The model was formulated by Ernest Rutherford in 1905 [1] and the analytical solution was provided by Harry Bateman in 1910. [2]
Radon-222 (222 Rn, Rn-222, historically radium emanation or radon) is the most stable isotope of radon, with a half-life of approximately 3.8 days. It is transient in the decay chain of primordial uranium-238 and is the immediate decay product of radium-226.
The decay-chain of uranium-238, which contains radium-226 as an intermediate decay product. 226 Ra occurs in the decay chain of uranium-238 (238 U), which is the most common naturally occurring isotope of uranium. It undergoes alpha decay to radon-222, which is also radioactive; the decay chain ultimately terminates at lead-206.
Radon emanation from the soil varies with soil type and with surface uranium content, so outdoor radon concentrations can be used to track air masses to a limited degree. [114] [a] Because of radon's rapid loss to air and comparatively rapid decay, radon is used in hydrologic research that studies the interaction between groundwater and streams ...
Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A material containing unstable nuclei is considered radioactive. Three of the most common types of decay are alpha, beta, and gamma decay.
Helium-3 is almost entirely primordial (a small amount is formed by natural nuclear reactions in the crust). Helium-3 can also be produced as the decay product of tritium (3 H) which is a product of some nuclear reactions, including ternary fission. The global supply of helium (which occurs in gas wells as well as the atmosphere) is mainly ...
They arise in the decay chain of the primordial isotopes thorium-232, uranium-238, and uranium-235. Examples include the natural isotopes of polonium and radium . Cosmogenic isotopes , such as carbon-14 , are present because they are continually being formed in the atmosphere due to cosmic rays .