Question
Polonium has a mass number of 212 and an atomic number of 84. In a balanced nuclear reaction, polonium releases an alpha particle to produce lead. Which option is the atomic number of lead?(1 point)
Responses
82
82
208
208
80
80
210
Responses
82
82
208
208
80
80
210
Answers
GPT-4o mini
In a nuclear reaction where polonium (with an atomic number of 84 and a mass number of 212) releases an alpha particle (which consists of 2 protons and 2 neutrons), the resulting nucleus will have its atomic number decreased by 2 and its mass number decreased by 4.
So, the atomic number of lead produced from the decay of polonium will be:
\[ 84 - 2 = 82 \]
Thus, the atomic number of lead is **82**.
The correct response is:
**82**
So, the atomic number of lead produced from the decay of polonium will be:
\[ 84 - 2 = 82 \]
Thus, the atomic number of lead is **82**.
The correct response is:
**82**