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23 July, 09:38

When Plutonium-239 undergoes alpha decay, it becomes A) curium-241 + an alpha particle B) uranium-235 + an alpha particle C) neptunium-237 + and alpha particle D) plutonium-237 + and alpha particle

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  1. 23 July, 11:24
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    An alpha particle is composed of two protons and two electrons.

    As a result, in alpha decay, the nucleus that decays loses two protons and two neutrons. So the mass number (239 in this case) decreases by 4.

    239 - 4 = 235,

    So the new nucleus must be B) Uranium-235, as it is the only one of the options that has an atomic mass of 235.
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