Plutonium-239 Is Used as a Fuel for Some Nuclear Reactors

question 22

Multiple Choice

Plutonium-239 is used as a fuel for some nuclear reactors and also as the fissionable material in atomic bombs. It has a half-life of 24,400 years. How long will it take 12 grams of plutonium-239 to decay to 2 grams ?
Round your answer to the nearest hundreds.

• A)31,600 years
• B) 15,800 years
• C) 126,200 years
• D) 63,100 years
• E) 63,200 years

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Definitions:

Partial Sum

The summation of a portion of a series of numbers, often used in the context of infinite series.

Sigma Notation

A symbolic method used in mathematics to denote the sum of a series of terms.

Arithmetic Sequence

A sequence of numbers in which the difference between consecutive numbers is constant.

Nth Partial Sum

The sum of the first n terms of a sequence, used to determine the cumulative value of a series up to a specified number of terms.