Until the 1940’s, the heaviest known atomic nucleus was uranium, with its atomic number 92. However, with the surge of modern technology and some significant advances of scientific methods, thirteen new elements have been artificially manufactured, all from the same element – Uranium – and all with atomic numbers greater than 92. The first eight were prepared by successive neutron bombardments of uranium:

²³⁸₉₂U + ¹₀n → ²³⁹₉₃Np + β^– + ^–v

This kind of reaction is not new. Different mutations such as this have been occurring in the stratosphere for thousands of years and vastly studied. Here, nitrogen is converted to carbon via a similar mechanism to that shown in Equation I.

¹⁴₇N + ¹₀n → ¹⁴₆C + p

The only difference between these reactions is that a beta particle and another subatomic species called a neutrino (^–v) are evolved from the first reaction while only a proton is obtained from the second reaction. Equation III, however, forms the basis of radiocarbon dating of organic remains, which has been used widely in many fields of archaeology and chemistry. When organisms die, they stop replenishing their body’s carbon-14 and a reverse process occurs.

¹⁴₆C → ¹⁴₇N + β^– + <sup-v
.

Find an error? Take a screenshot, email it to us at error@mytestingsolution.com, and we’ll send you $3!