Metal Plutonium Research Paper
Plutonium Essay I would like to work on the metal plutonium because the discovery of plutonium has a great impact on the world. Plutonium’s symbol is Pu and its atomic number is 94. This element has 150 neutrons and 94 protons and its standard atomic weigh is 244. Plutonium is located in the 7th period and it is a silvery white metal. One of its main uses is to act as the fuel of nuclear fission Plutonium does not exist naturally, although some say that small traces are found in the environment. So therefore, it is generally a man-made element. Plutonium was first discovered in a California university radiation laboratory by nuclear chemist and scientist Glenn T. Seaborg and his colleges. The first
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Because of the discovery of plutonium is in 1940 and World War 2 is happening at that time, discovery of plutonium was kept as a secret. In order to produce plutonium, uranium atoms must absorb neurons and it will decay into plutonium. One example of neutron absorption is nuclear fission, which will be explained below. Back in the time when plutonium is discovered, the US had a scheme called the Manhattan project. They built facilities that are used to produce plutonium from uranium. They lower the fuel rod, which is basically containers containing uranium, and they release the neutrons and they starts to bombard the uranium. That 's one of the methods of plutonium production that is in use today still. Near the end of World War II, United states dropped 2 atomic bombs in Japan, one made from uranium and the other made from plutonium. The death toll was over 100,000 and there are even more that suffered from long-term diseases caused by the gamma radiation released. That 's when the world realized the destruction caused by uranium and plutonium, and they started to have restrictions for mining uranium and producing plutonium. An …show more content…
It can be a useful tool and resource to generate mass or even renewable electricity; it can also be used as a weapon of mass destruction and without proper treatment, nobody can promise accidents like the Chernobyl incident would not happen again. The discovery of this metal provided many possibilities, and with plutonium, we are another step closer to achieve sustainable and unlimited energy. (Or the destruction of
Because of the discovery of plutonium is in 1940 and World War 2 is happening at that time, discovery of plutonium was kept as a secret. In order to produce plutonium, uranium atoms must absorb neurons and it will decay into plutonium. One example of neutron absorption is nuclear fission, which will be explained below. Back in the time when plutonium is discovered, the US had a scheme called the Manhattan project. They built facilities that are used to produce plutonium from uranium. They lower the fuel rod, which is basically containers containing uranium, and they release the neutrons and they starts to bombard the uranium. That 's one of the methods of plutonium production that is in use today still. Near the end of World War II, United states dropped 2 atomic bombs in Japan, one made from uranium and the other made from plutonium. The death toll was over 100,000 and there are even more that suffered from long-term diseases caused by the gamma radiation released. That 's when the world realized the destruction caused by uranium and plutonium, and they started to have restrictions for mining uranium and producing plutonium. An …show more content…
It can be a useful tool and resource to generate mass or even renewable electricity; it can also be used as a weapon of mass destruction and without proper treatment, nobody can promise accidents like the Chernobyl incident would not happen again. The discovery of this metal provided many possibilities, and with plutonium, we are another step closer to achieve sustainable and unlimited energy. (Or the destruction of