Question by casey c: Can you tell me wether each of these nuclear equations is alpha decay, beta decay, or fusion?
a. Thorium-234—>Proactinium-234 + -1
b. Hydrogen + Hydrogen —> Helium
c. Uranium-238—>Thorium-234 + Helium-4
Best answer:
Answer by Tarra
a. beta decay (electron or positron is emitted)
b. fusion (nuclear fusion is the process by which multiple nuclei join together to form a heavier nucleus)
c. alpha decay (atomic nucleus ejects an alpha particle through electromagnetic force and transforms into a nucleus with mass number 4 less and atomic number 2 less.
Give your answer to this question below!
2 Responses
1) is beta
2) is fusion
3) is alpha
an alpha particle is a helium-4 nucleus. Look for He-4 as a product along with anothe element. (Don’t confuse this with a fusion reactions where the ONLY product may be helium. If there is no other “daughter” product then it isn’t alpha decay)
a beta (minus) particle is an electrons. Look for an electrons as a product (your equation “a” should have e-1 as a product)
in fusion two smaller nuclei are “fused” into one. Look for two reactants forming one product