Try it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.
A cobalt-60 source for cancer treatment has an activity of Bq, which is Ci. The half-life of cobalt-60 is years and its molar mass is g/mol. Find the number of cobalt-60 atoms in the source and the mass of cobalt-60. Use .
The activity of a sample falls as , so the age is . For uranium-lead dating, , with numbers of atoms. A year is s.
Have you tried it?
Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.
Step 1. The decay constant. s, so .
Step 2. The number of atoms. .
Step 3. The mass. The number of moles is mol. The mass is g.
Answer: atoms, with a mass of g.
Check. Less than one gram of a short-lived isotope has the activity of a large source. For the same activity, a long-lived isotope would need a much larger mass.
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