Physics

Problem

A nuclear reaction is proposed:

^{14}\!\mathrm N + {}^{4}\!\mathrm{He} \;\longrightarrow\; {}^{18}\!\mathrm F

. The following atomic masses are provided:

^{14}\!\mathrm N = 14.003074\,u

^{4}\!\mathrm{He} = 4.002603\,u

^{18}\!\mathrm F = 18.000938\,u

. (a) Write the balanced nuclear equation including all nucleon numbers. (b) Without doing any numerical calculation, predict whether this reaction is expected to release or absorb energy, quoting the relevant feature of the binding-energy-per-nucleon curve. (c) Verify your prediction by calculating the energy change (in MeV) per reaction using the above masses. Take

1\,u = 931\,\text{MeV}\,c^{-2}

. a. Write balanced nuclear equation b. Qualitative prediction of energy release/absorption c. Numerical calculation of

Q

-value

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