Given the following chart, what will the rock contain after 40.000 years or 2 half-lives?

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Given the following chart, what will the rock contain after 40.000 years or 2 half-lives?

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Answer 1 · 2017-03-05T13:44:09

There is $5 m g$ $5mg$ unstable isotope and $15 m g$ $15mg$ stable isotope.

Explanation:

After one half-life, the amount of unstable isotope halves. After another half-life, that amount halves again, so

$t_{\frac{1}{2}} \to \frac{20}{2} = 10 m g$ $t_(1/2) -> 20/2 = 10mg$

$2 t_{\frac{1}{2}} \to \frac{10}{2} = 5 m g$ $2t_(1/2) -> 10/2 = 5mg$

The unstable product decays into the stable product and the total mass remains the same. Adding together the mass of unstable and stable isotopes, it is always $20 m g$ $20mg$ , so

$20 - 5 = 15 m g$ $20 - 5 = 15mg$ of stable isotope after 40,000 years.

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Given the following chart, what will the rock contain after 40.000 years or 2 half-lives?

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