In a nuclear reaction, to calculate the amount of energy it will produce, you must know the difference between the total nuclear mass before and after the reaction.
<em>option </em><em>A</em><em> is the correct answer.</em>
<h3>What is mass defect?</h3>
Mass defect is the <u>difference</u> between the predicted mass and the actual mass of an atom's nucleus.
In this scenario the actual atomic mass is less than the predicted mass which is calculated by adding the masses of nucleons.
The mass defect represents the energy that was released when the nucleus of an atom is formed.
The amount of energy released in a nuclear reaction is calculated as;
E = Δmc²
where;
- Δm is the mass defect or change in mass of the atoms
- c is the speed of light
The above equation is known as Einstein binding energy equation.
Learn more about nuclear energy here: brainly.com/question/15214614
#SPJ1
