A radionuclide ( radioactive nuclide, radioisotope or radioactive isotope) is a nuclide that has excess numbers of either or , giving it excess nuclear energy, and making it unstable. This excess energy can be used in one of three ways: emitted from the nucleus as gamma radiation; transferred to one of its to release it as a conversion electron; or used to create and emit a new particle (alpha particle or beta particle) from the nucleus. During those processes, the radionuclide is said to undergo radioactive decay.
Radionuclides occur naturally or are artificially produced in , , particle accelerators or radionuclide generators. There are about 730 radionuclides with half-lives longer than 60 minutes (see list of nuclides). Thirty-two of those are primordial radionuclides that were created before the Earth was formed. At least another 60 radionuclides are detectable in nature, either as daughters of primordial radionuclides or as radionuclides produced through natural production on Earth by cosmic radiation. More than 2400 radionuclides have half-lives less than 60 minutes. Most of those are only produced artificially, and have very short half-lives. For comparison, there are 251 .
All can exist as radionuclides. Even the lightest element, hydrogen, has a well-known radionuclide, tritium. Elements heavier than lead, and the elements technetium and promethium, exist only as radionuclides.
Unplanned exposure to radionuclides generally has a harmful effect on living organisms including humans, although low levels of exposure occur naturally without harm. The degree of harm will depend on the nature and extent of the radiation produced, the amount and nature of exposure (close contact, inhalation or ingestion), and the biochemical properties of the element; with increased risk of cancer the most usual consequence. However, radionuclides with suitable properties are used in nuclear medicine for both diagnosis and treatment. An imaging tracer made with radionuclides is called a radioactive tracer. A pharmaceutical drug made with radionuclides is called a radiopharmaceutical.
Origin
Natural
On Earth, naturally occurring radionuclides fall into three categories: primordial radionuclides, secondary radionuclides, and
cosmogenic radionuclides.
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Radionuclides are produced in stellar nucleosynthesis and supernova explosions along with stable nuclides. Most decay quickly but can still be observed astronomically and can play a part in understanding astronomic processes. Primordial radionuclides, such as uranium and thorium, exist in the present time because their half-life are so long (>100 million years) that they have not yet completely decayed. Some radionuclides have half-lives so long (many times the age of the universe) that decay has only recently been detected, and for most practical purposes they can be considered stable, most notably bismuth-209: detection of this decay meant that bismuth was no longer considered stable. It is possible decay may be observed in other nuclides, adding to this list of primordial radionuclides.
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Secondary radionuclides are radiogenic isotopes derived from the decay of primordial radionuclides. They have shorter half-lives than primordial radionuclides. They arise in the decay chain of the primordial isotopes thorium-232, uranium-238, and uranium-235. Examples include the natural isotopes of polonium and radium.
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Cosmogenic isotopes, such as carbon-14, are present because they are continually being formed in the atmosphere due to .
Many of these radionuclides exist only in trace amounts in nature, including all cosmogenic nuclides. Secondary radionuclides will occur in proportion to their half-lives, so short-lived ones will be very rare. For example, polonium can be found in uranium ores at about 0.1 mg per metric ton (1 part in 1010).[Bagnall, K. W. (1962). "The Chemistry of Polonium". Advances in Inorganic Chemistry and Radiochemistry 4. New York: Academic Press. pp. 197–226. doi:10.1016/S0065-2792(08)60268-X. . Retrieved June 14, 2012., p. 746][Bagnall, K. W. (1962). "The Chemistry of Polonium". Advances in Inorganic Chemistry and Radiochemistry 4. New York: Academic Press., p. 198] Further radionuclides may occur in nature in virtually undetectable amounts as a result of rare events such as spontaneous fission or uncommon cosmic ray interactions.
Nuclear fission
Radionuclides are produced as an unavoidable result of
nuclear fission and thermonuclear explosions. The process of nuclear fission creates a wide range of
fission products, most of which are radionuclides. Further radionuclides can be created from irradiation of the nuclear fuel (creating a range of
actinides) and of the surrounding structures, yielding activation products. This complex mixture of radionuclides with different chemistries and radioactivity makes handling
nuclear waste and dealing with
nuclear fallout particularly problematic.
Synthetic
Synthetic radionuclides are deliberately synthesised using
, particle accelerators or radionuclide generators:
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As well as being extracted from nuclear waste, radioisotopes can be produced deliberately with nuclear reactors, exploiting the high flux of present. These neutrons activate elements placed within the reactor. A typical product from a nuclear reactor is iridium-192. The elements that have a large propensity to take up the neutrons in the reactor are said to have a high neutron cross-section.
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Particle accelerators such as accelerate particles to bombard a target to produce radionuclides. Cyclotrons accelerate protons at a target to produce positron-emitting radionuclides, e.g. fluorine-18.
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Radionuclide generators contain a parent radionuclide that decays to produce a radioactive daughter. The parent is usually produced in a nuclear reactor. A typical example is the technetium-99m generator used in nuclear medicine. The parent produced in the reactor is molybdenum-99.
Uses
Radionuclides are used in two major ways: either for their radiation alone (
irradiation,
nuclear battery) or for the combination of chemical properties and their radiation (tracers, biopharmaceuticals).
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In biology, radionuclides of carbon can serve as radioactive tracers because they are chemically very similar to the nonradioactive nuclides, so most chemical, biological, and ecological processes treat them in a nearly identical way. One can then examine the result with a radiation detector, such as a Geiger counter, to determine where the provided atoms were incorporated. For example, one might culture plants in an environment in which the carbon dioxide contained radioactive carbon; then the parts of the plant that incorporate atmospheric carbon would be radioactive. Radionuclides can be used to monitor processes such as DNA replication or amino acid transport.
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in physics and biology radionuclide X-ray fluorescence spectrometry is used to determine chemical composition of the compound. X-ray from a radionuclide source hits the sample and excites characteristic X-rays in the sample. This radiation is registered and the chemical composition of the sample can be determined from the analysis of the measured spectrum. By measuring the energy of the characteristic radiation lines, it is possible to determine the Atomic number of the chemical element that emits the radiation, and by measuring the number of emitted , it is possible to determine the concentration of individual chemical elements.
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In nuclear medicine, radioisotopes are used for diagnosis, treatment, and research. Radioactive chemical tracers emitting gamma rays or positrons can provide diagnostic information about internal anatomy and the functioning of specific organs, including the human brain.
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In food preservation, radiation is used to stop the sprouting of root crops after harvesting, to kill parasites and pests, and to control the ripening of stored fruit and vegetables. Food irradiation usually uses beta-decaying nuclides with strong gamma emissions like cobalt-60 or caesium-137.
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In industry, and in mining, radionuclides are used to examine welds, to detect leaks, to study the rate of wear, erosion and corrosion of metals, and for on-stream analysis of a wide range of minerals and fuels.
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In spacecraft, radionuclides are used to provide power and heat, notably through radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) and radioisotope heater units (RHUs).
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In astronomy and cosmology, radionuclides play a role in understanding stellar and planetary process.
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In particle physics, radionuclides help discover new physics (physics beyond the Standard Model) by measuring the energy and momentum of their beta decay products (for example, neutrinoless double beta decay and the search for weakly interacting massive particles).
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In ecology, radionuclides are used to trace and analyze pollutants, to study the movement of surface water, and to measure water runoffs from rain and snow, as well as the flow rates of streams and rivers.
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In geology, archaeology, and paleontology, natural radionuclides are used to measure ages of rocks, minerals, and fossil materials.
Examples
The following table lists properties of selected radionuclides illustrating the range of properties and uses.
Key:
Z =
atomic number;
N =
neutron number; DM = decay mode; DE = decay energy; EC =
electron capture
Household smoke detectors
Radionuclides are present in many homes as they are used inside the most common household
. The radionuclide used is americium-241, which is created by bombarding plutonium with neutrons in a nuclear reactor. It decays by emitting
and
gamma radiation to become neptunium-237. Smoke detectors use a very small quantity of
241Am (about 0.29 micrograms per smoke detector) in the form of americium dioxide.
241Am is used as it emits alpha particles which ionize the air in the detector's ionization chamber. A small electric voltage is applied to the ionized air which gives rise to a small electric current. In the presence of smoke, some of the ions are neutralized, thereby decreasing the current, which activates the detector's alarm.
[ Office of Radiation Protection – Am 241 Fact Sheet – Washington State Department of Health ]
Impacts on organisms
Radionuclides that find their way into the environment may cause harmful effects as radioactive contamination. They can also cause damage if they are excessively used during treatment or in other ways exposed to living beings, by radiation poisoning. Potential health damage from exposure to radionuclides depends on a number of factors, and "can damage the functions of healthy tissue/organs. Radiation exposure can produce effects ranging from skin redness and hair loss, to
and acute radiation syndrome. Prolonged exposure can lead to cells being damaged and in turn lead to cancer. Signs of cancerous cells might not show up until years, or even decades, after exposure."
Summary table for classes of nuclides, stable and radioactive
Following is a summary table for the list of 989 nuclides with half-lives greater than one hour. A total of 251 nuclides have never been observed to decay, and are classically considered stable. Of these, 90 are believed to be absolutely stable except to
proton decay (which has never been observed), while the rest are "observationally stable" and theoretically can undergo radioactive decay with extremely long half-lives.
The remaining tabulated radionuclides have half-lives longer than 1 hour, and are well-characterized (see list of nuclides for a complete tabulation). They include 30 nuclides with measured half-lives longer than the estimated age of the universe (13.8 billion years
Numbers are not exact, and may change slightly in the future, as "stable nuclides" are observed to be radioactive with very long half-lives.
This is a summary table[Table data is derived by counting members of the list; see . References for the list data itself are given below in the reference section in list of nuclides] for the 989 nuclides with half-lives longer than one hour (including those that are stable), given in list of nuclides.
|
| Theoretically stable to all but proton decay | 90 | 90 | Includes first 40 elements. Proton decay yet to be observed. |
| Theoretically stable to alpha decay, beta decay, isomeric transition, and double beta decay but not spontaneous fission, which is possible for "stable" nuclides ≥ niobium-93 | 56 | 146 | All nuclides that are possibly completely stable (spontaneous fission has never been observed for nuclides with mass number < 232). |
| Energetically unstable to one or more known decay modes, but no decay yet seen. All considered "stable" until decay detected. | 105 | 251 | Total of classically . |
| Radioactive primordial nuclides. | 35 | 286 | Total primordial elements include uranium, thorium, bismuth, rubidium-87, potassium-40, tellurium-128 plus all stable nuclides. |
| Radioactive nonprimordial, but naturally occurring on Earth. | 61 | 347 | Carbon-14 (and other isotopes generated by cosmic rays) and daughters of radioactive primordial elements, such as radium, polonium, etc. 41 of these have a half life of greater than one hour. |
| Radioactive synthetic half-life ≥ 1.0 hour). Includes most useful . | 662 | 989 | These 989 nuclides are listed in the article List of nuclides. |
| Radioactive synthetic (half-life < 1.0 hour). | >2400 | >3300 | Includes all well-characterized synthetic nuclides. |
|
List of commercially available radionuclides
This list covers common isotopes, most of which are available in very small quantities to the general public in most countries. Others that are not publicly accessible are traded commercially in industrial, medical, and scientific fields and are subject to government regulation.
Gamma emission only
|
|
| Barium-133 | 9694 TBq/kg (262 Ci/g) | 10.7 years | 81.0, 356.0 |
| Cadmium-109 | 96200 TBq/kg (2600 Ci/g) | 453 days | 88.0 |
| Cobalt-57 | 312280 TBq/kg (8440 Ci/g) | 270 days | 122.1 |
| Cobalt-60 | 40700 TBq/kg (1100 Ci/g) | 5.27 years | 1173.2, 1332.5 |
| Europium-152 | 6660 TBq/kg (180 Ci/g) | 13.5 years | 121.8, 344.3, 1408.0 |
| Manganese-54 | 287120 TBq/kg (7760 Ci/g) | 312 days | 834.8 |
| Sodium-22 | 237540 Tbq/kg (6240 Ci/g) | 2.6 years | 511.0, 1274.5 |
| Zinc-65 | 304510 TBq/kg (8230 Ci/g) | 244 days | 511.0, 1115.5 |
| Technetium-99m | TBq/kg (5.27 × 105 Ci/g) | 6 hours | 140 |
Beta emission only
|
|
| Strontium-90 | 5180 TBq/kg (140 Ci/g) | 28.5 years | 546.0 |
| Thallium-204 | 17057 TBq/kg (461 Ci/g) | 3.78 years | 763.4 |
| Carbon-14 | 166.5 TBq/kg (4.5 Ci/g) | 5730 years | 156.5 |
| Tritium (Hydrogen-3) | 357050 TBq/kg (9650 Ci/g) | 12.32 years | 18.6 |
Alpha emission only
|
|
| Polonium-210 | 166500 TBq/kg (4500 Ci/g) | 138.376 days | 5304.5 |
| Uranium-238 | 12580 kBq/kg (0.00000034 Ci/g) | 4.468 billion years | 4267 |
Multiple radiation emitters
|
|
| Caesium-137 | 3256 TBq/kg (88 Ci/g) | 30.1 years | Gamma & beta | G: 32, 661.6 B: 511.6, 1173.2 |
| Americium-241 | 129.5 TBq/kg (3.5 Ci/g) | 432.2 years | Gamma & alpha | G: 59.5, 26.3, 13.9 A: 5485, 5443 |
See also
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List of nuclides shows all radionuclides with half-life > 1 hour
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Hyperaccumulators table – 3
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Radioactivity in biology
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Radiometric dating
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Radionuclide cisternogram
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Uses of radioactivity in oil and gas wells
Notes
Further reading
External links
