Sodium undergoes beta decay. Match the missing parts (A, B, and C) of the nuclear equation above to their correct number or symbol:

Question

24/11 Na → 0/-1 e + A/B C

Column A
1.
A:
A
2.
B:
B
3.
C:
C
Column B
a.Ne
b.10
c.23
d.12
e.Mg
f.24
g.25

Answer 1

In beta decay, a neutron in the nucleus of an atom is transformed into a proton while releasing a beta particle (which is an electron). For sodium-24 (represented as \(^{24}_{11}Na\)) undergoing beta decay, the resulting product will be magnesium-24.

The process can be summarized as follows:

• The mass number (A) remains the same because a neutron is converted into a proton (mass number does not change).
• The atomic number (B) will increase by 1 (since a neutron becomes a proton), going from 11 to 12.

Thus, the decay equation can be filled out as follows:

\[^{24}{11} Na \rightarrow ^{24}{12} Mg + ^{0}_{-1} e\]

Now we can match the missing parts to the options provided:

• For A (mass number of the product), it should be 24 (same as sodium).
• For B (atomic number of magnesium), it should be 12.
• For C (symbol for the product), it should be Mg.

Therefore, the correct answers are:

• A: 24 (from option f)
• B: 12 (from option d)
• C: Mg (from option e)

So the final matches are:

1. A: f (24)
2. B: d (12)
3. C: e (Mg)