The mass, M M\,M grams, of a radioactive isotope in a laboratory sample after t t\,t hours can be modelled by
M=M0e−kt M = M_0 e^{-kt} M=M0e−ktwhere M0 M_0\,M0 is the initial mass and k k\,k is a positive constant. The model remains valid for large masses.
It takes 12.4 hours for the mass of the sample to reach 50% of its initial value.
Determine the number of days required for at least 95% of the mass of the original sample to decay.
Find the percentage of the initial mass remaining after 5 days. Give your answer to two significant figures.
Explain why the model can only provide an estimate for the actual mass observed.
Explain why the model is invalid in the very long run as t→∞t \to \inftyt→∞.
825 exam-style questions on OCR (MEI) A Level Maths 1.9 Calculus, covering 1.9.1 Gradient of a curve at a point, 1.9.2 Gradient as limit of chord gradient, 1.9.3 Derivative as gradient of tangent, 1.9.4 Sketch the gradient function, 1.9.5 Differentiate y = kx^n, 1.9.6 Second derivative as rate of change of gradient, 1.9.7 Stationary points: maxima and minima, 1.9.8 Increasing and decreasing functions, 1.9.9 Tangent and normal at a point, 1.9.10 Differentiate e^kx, a^kx and ln x (A-level only), 1.9.11 Differentiate trigonometric functions (A-level only), 1.9.12 Product rule (A-level only), 1.9.13 Quotient rule (A-level only), 1.9.14 Chain rule (A-level only), 1.9.15 Rates of change with the chain rule (A-level only), 1.9.16 Implicit differentiation (A-level only), 1.9.17 Concavity and the second derivative (A-level only), 1.9.18 Points of inflection (A-level only), 1.9.19 Integration as reverse of differentiation, 1.9.20 Integrate kx^n, 1.9.21 Constant of integration, 1.9.22 Indefinite and definite integrals, 1.9.23 Area between a graph and the x-axis, 1.9.24 Integrate e^kx, 1/x, sin kx, cos kx (A-level only), 1.9.25 Integration as the limit of a sum (A-level only), 1.9.26 Area between two curves (A-level only), 1.9.27 Integration by substitution (reverse chain rule) (A-level only), 1.9.28 Integration by substitution (other cases) (A-level only), 1.9.29 Integration by parts (A-level only), 1.9.30 Integration using partial fractions (A-level only), 1.9.31 Formulate first order differential equations (A-level only), 1.9.32 Solve first order differential equations (A-level only), and 1.9.33 Interpret solutions of differential equations (A-level only). Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.