plutonium physical properties

It is a heat source in radioisotope thermoelectric generators, which are used to power some spacecraft. [22], Plutonium-238 is synthesized by bombarding uranium-238 with deuterons (D, the nuclei of heavy hydrogen) in the following reaction:[23], In this process, a deuteron hitting uranium-238 produces two neutrons and neptunium-238, which spontaneously decays by emitting negative beta particles to form plutonium-238.[24]. Plutonium has a … Plutonium-242. [5], Twenty radioactive isotopes of plutonium have been characterized. [86][note 7], An identical design was used in the "Fat Man" atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, on August 9, 1945, killing 35,000–40,000 people and destroying 68%–80% of war production at Nagasaki. The second facility planned for 200-East was canceled. This element also has eight metastable states, though all have half-lives less than one second. Once in the bloodstream, plutonium moves throughout the body and into the bones, liver, or other body organs. [10], Plutonium in the δ (delta) form normally exists in the 310 °C to 452 °C range but is stable at room temperature when alloyed with a small percentage of gallium, aluminium, or cerium, enhancing workability and allowing it to be welded. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four oxidation states. [34] The glass is made of borosilicates mixed with cadmium and gadolinium. [69][note 4] On December 2, 1942, on a racket court under the west grandstand at the University of Chicago's Stagg Field, researchers headed by Enrico Fermi achieved the first self-sustaining chain reaction in a graphite and uranium pile known as CP-1. It has machining characteristics similar to cast iron but changes to the plastic and malleable β (beta) form at slightly higher temperatures. [35] The radioactivity of the burning material is an additional hazard. Care must be taken to avoid the accumulation of amounts of plutonium which approach critical mass, particularly because plutonium's critical mass is only a third of that of uranium-235. [33] Partial exceptions include the refractory metals chromium, molybdenum, niobium, tantalum, and tungsten, which are soluble in liquid plutonium, but insoluble or only slightly soluble in solid plutonium. Voice Call. The decay heat is usually listed as watt/kilogram, or milliwatt/gram. [34] Breeder reactors are specifically designed to create more fissionable material than they consume. It also shares similar properties to that of lanthanum. Physical properties of Plutonium include melting point, boiling point, mechanical strength The other fissile material is uranium-235. [98] Starting in 1999, military-generated nuclear waste is being entombed at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico. Inside the safe were various items, including a large glass bottle containing a whitish slurry which was subsequently identified as the oldest sample of weapons-grade plutonium known to exist. [8] It also reacts readily with oxygen, forming PuO and PuO2 as well as intermediate oxides; plutonium oxide fills 40% more volume than plutonium metal. This was the first time a compound of an artificially produced element had been made in a visible quantity, allowing detailed studies of its properties. [71], The nuclear properties of plutonium-239 were also studied; researchers found that when it is hit by a neutron it breaks apart (fissions) by releasing more neutrons and energy. [108] This critical mass is about a third of that for uranium-235. [128], During the decay of plutonium, three types of radiation are released—alpha, beta, and gamma. Early research on plutonium was carried out secretly at the University of Chicago’s Metallurgical Laboratory. The atomic number of plutonium is 94. It has six allotropic forms, which vary widely in crystal structure and density. [132][133], Plutonium is more dangerous when inhaled than when ingested. [111], The most common chemical process, PUREX (Plutonium–URanium EXtraction) reprocesses spent nuclear fuel to extract plutonium and uranium which can be used to form a mixed oxide (MOX) fuel for reuse in nuclear reactors. [114], Plutonium recovered from spent reactor fuel poses little proliferation hazard, because of excessive contamination with non-fissile plutonium-240 and plutonium-242. [151] In 2016, the ships Pacific Egret[152] and Pacific Heron of Pacific Nuclear Transport Ltd. transported 331 kg (730 lbs) of plutonium to a United States government facility in Savannah River, South Carolina. Plutonium-239 is virtually nonexistent in nature. For other uses, see, This was not the first time somebody suggested that an element be named "plutonium". are pyrophoric, meaning they can ignite spontaneously at ambient temperature and are therefore handled in an inert, dry atmosphere of nitrogen or argon. Careless handling of tungsten carbide bricks around a 6.2 kg plutonium sphere resulted in a fatal dose of radiation at Los Alamos on August 21, 1945, when scientist Harry Daghlian received a dose estimated to be 5.1 sievert (510 rems) and died 25 days later. [31][30], Metallic plutonium is produced by reacting plutonium tetrafluoride with barium, calcium or lithium at 1200 °C. a weapon pit) and inadequate heat removal the resulting self-heating may be significant. [7] Resistivity then begins to increase with time at around 20 K due to radiation damage, with the rate dictated by the isotopic composition of the sample. [115], The "hot particle" theory in which a particle of plutonium dust irradiates a localized spot of lung tissue is not supported by mainstream research—such particles are more mobile than originally thought and toxicity is not measurably increased due to particulate form. Plutonium. [102], In the case of human subjects, this involved injecting solutions containing (typically) five micrograms of plutonium into hospital patients thought to be either terminally ill, or to have a life expectancy of less than ten years either due to age or chronic disease condition. Plutonium metal is very sensitive to the change in atmospheric conditions like temperature and pressure. 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[34], During the early stages of research, animals were used to study the effects of radioactive substances on health. A dedicated reactor operating on very low burnup (hence minimal exposure of newly formed plutonium-239 to additional neutrons which causes it to be transformed to heavier isotopes of plutonium) is generally required to produce material suitable for use in efficient nuclear weapons. It is therefore used in radioisotope thermoelectric generators and radioisotope heater units such as those in the Cassini,[118] Voyager, Galileo and New Horizons[119] space probes, and the Curiosity [120] and Perseverance (Mars 2020) Mars rovers. Physical Science. [130] The skeleton, where plutonium accumulates, and the liver, where it collects and becomes concentrated, are at risk. Plutonium has an Electronic configuration [Rn] 5f6 6d0 7s2. [15] During fission, a fraction of the nuclear binding energy, which holds a nucleus together, is released as a large amount of electromagnetic and kinetic energy (much of the latter being quickly converted to thermal energy). This makes plutonium very sensitive to changes in temperature, pressure, or chemistry, and allows for dramatic volume changes following phase transitions from one allotropic form to another. [8] The densities of the different allotropes vary from 16.00 g/cm3 to 19.86 g/cm3. History and Discovery. Atom sizes. Plutonium has an Atomic weight 239. Seaborg thought that he would receive a great deal of flak over that suggestion, but the naming committee accepted the symbol without a word.". A typical transport consists of one truck carrying one protected shipping container, holding a number of packages with a total weight varying from 80 to 200 kg of plutonium oxide. Polonium element and its compounds are highly radioactive. Plutonium increases in density when it melts by 2.5%, but it has a very high surface tension and viscosity when near its. The danger increases with the amount of exposure. The quantity of isotopes in the decay chains at a certain time are calculated with the Bateman equation. [150] The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission dictates that it must be solid instead of powder if the contents surpass 0.74 TBq (20 Curies) of radioactive activity. Unlike most metals, it is not a good conductor of heat or electricity. [103], The isotope plutonium-239 is a key fissile component in nuclear weapons, due to its ease of fission and availability. Plutonium is a actinide element. [106] Other experiments directed by the United States Atomic Energy Commission and the Manhattan Project continued into the 1970s. [126] Plutonium-238 mixed with beryllium is used to generate neutrons for research purposes. [86][109] Hypothetically, as little as 4 kg of plutonium—and maybe even less—could be used to make a single atomic bomb using very sophisticated assembly designs. [141] However, those zooplankton that succumb to predation by larger organisms may become a transmission vehicle of plutonium to fish. The energy difference between the 6d and 5f subshells is very low. Plutonium is named after planet Pluto similar to its predecessor neptunium named after the planet Neptune. This can result in an explosion large enough to destroy a city if enough of the isotope is concentrated to form a critical mass. [131] Plutonium passes only slowly through cell membranes and intestinal boundaries, so absorption by ingestion and incorporation into bone structure proceeds very slowly. Washington, DC. Exceptions include lithium, sodium, potassium, rubidium and caesium of the alkali metals; and magnesium, calcium, strontium, and barium of the alkaline earth metals; and europium and ytterbium of the rare earth metals. ", "Nuclear Criticality Safety Engineering Training Module 10 – Criticality Safety in Material Processing Operations, Part 1", "Primer on Spontaneous Heating and Pyrophoricity – Pyrophoric Metals – Plutonium", "Low Temperature Reaction of ReillexTM HPQ and Nitric Acid", "The aqueous corrosion behavior of plutonium metal and plutonium–gallium alloys exposed to aqueous nitrate and chloride solutions", "Unconventional superconductivity in PuCoGa, "Nature's uncommon elements: plutonium and technetium", "A Short History of Nuclear Data and Its Evaluation", "Artificial radioactivity produced by neutron bombardment: Nobel Lecture", "An Early History of LBNL: Elements 93 and 94", "Reflections on the Legacy of a Legend: Glenn T. Seaborg, 1912–1999", "History of MET Lab Section C-I, April 1942 – April 1943", "Room 405, George Herbert Jones Laboratory", "The taming of "49"  – Big Science in little time. Special precautions are necessary to store or handle plutonium in any form; generally a dry inert gas atmosphere is required. [34] The U.S. planned to store plutonium in this way at the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository, which is about 100 miles (160 km) north-east of Las Vegas, Nevada.[97]. Additionally, the formal +2 oxidation state of plutonium is known in the complex [K(2.2.2-cryptand)] [PuIICp″3], Cp″ = C5H3(SiMe3)2. In: Challenges in Plutonium Science", "Kate Brown: Nuclear "Plutopias" the Largest Welfare Program in American History", "BBC NEWS – Science & Environment – US nuclear relic found in bottle", "8.1.1 The Design of Gadget, Fat Man, and "Joe 1" (RDS-1)", "The Yields of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki Explosions", "Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and Materials to State and Non-State Actors: What It Means for the Future of Nuclear Power", "Historic American Engineering Record: B Reactor (105-B Building)", Stockholm International Peace Research Institute 2007, "Nuclear waste won't be going to Nevada's Yucca Mountain, Obama official says", "Disposal Subcommittee Report to the Full Commission", "The Human Plutonium Injection Experiments", "Injected! Physical, Nuclear, and Chemical Properties of Plutonium Plutonium-239 is one of the two fissile materials used for the production of nuclear weapons and in some nuclear reactors as a source of energy. [34], Plutonium-238 has also been used successfully to power artificial heart pacemakers, to reduce the risk of repeated surgery. [117] Being an alpha emitter, it combines high energy radiation with low penetration and thereby requires minimal shielding. Producing plutonium in useful quantities for the first time was a major part of the Manhattan Project during World War II that developed the first atomic bombs. One study investigated the effects of transuranium elements (plutonium-238, plutonium-239, plutonium-240) on various fish living in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone (CEZ).

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