High School

A Radon-224 atom undergoes alpha decay. What is the resulting daughter isotope?

A. Polonium-224
B. Polonium-220
C. Radon-220
D. Lead-220
E. Lead-222

Answer :

Final answer:

Alpha decay of Radon-224 results in the emission of an alpha particle, transforming it into Polonium-220. This process involves subtracting 4 from the mass number and 2 from the atomic number. Thus, the resulting daughter isotope is Polonium-220.


Explanation:

Understanding Alpha Decay of Radon-224

When a Radon-224 atom undergoes alpha decay, it emits an alpha particle, which consists of 2 protons and 2 neutrons (essentially a helium nucleus). The initial isotope, represented as 224Rn, has an atomic number of 86.

To find the resulting daughter isotope, we apply the following calculations:

  1. Subtract 4 from the mass number (224 - 4 = 220).
  2. Subtract 2 from the atomic number (86 - 2 = 84).

These calculations indicate that the daughter isotope is represented as 220Po (Polonium-220) with an atomic number of 84. Therefore, the complete equation for the decay can be summarized as:

224Rn → 220Po + α

This shows that after alpha decay of Radon-224, the resulting daughter isotope is Polonium-220.


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https://brainly.com/question/27870937


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