In a laboratory, safety measures must be taken when handling radioactive isotopes.
Explain why a scientist is contaminated if they accidentally get radioactive dust on their lab coat.
Explain why a scientist is irradiated if they stand near a sealed radioactive source.
Cobalt-60 is an isotope that undergoes beta decay. It has a half-life of 5 years.
Explain what is meant by the term 'a half-life of 5 years'.
Cobalt-60 is an isotope that undergoes beta decay. It has a half-life of 5 years.
In a medical sterilisation facility, a source initially contains 40 g40\text{ g}40 g of Cobalt-60. Calculate the mass of Cobalt-60 that remains undecayed after 15 years.
Complete the following nuclear equations:
A radium nucleus decays into a radon nucleus by emitting an alpha particle:
88226Ra→ZARn+24He {}_{88}^{226}\text{Ra} \rightarrow {}_{Z}^{A}\text{Rn} + {}_{2}^{4}\text{He} 88226Ra→ZARn+24HeFind the missing values AAA and ZZZ.
Complete the following nuclear equations:
An alpha particle then collides with a boron-10 nucleus to produce a nitrogen-13 nucleus and a single particle (represented by X\text{X}X):
510B+24He→713N+zaX {}_{5}^{10}\text{B} + {}_{2}^{4}\text{He} \rightarrow {}_{7}^{13}\text{N} + {}_{z}^{a}\text{X} 510B+24He→713N+zaXDetermine the mass number aaa, atomic number zzz, and identify particle X\text{X}X.
41 exam-style questions on OCR GCSE Physics Radioactive emissions. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.