Question

If you have 80g of a radioactive substance whose half life is 2 days, how long will it take for the substance to decay to the point where there is only 10g left?

Answer 1

Answer:

6 days.

Explanation:

From radioactivity, The expression for half life is given as,

R/R' = 2⁽ᵃ/ᵇ)................... Equation 1

Where R = original mass of the radioactive substance, R' = Remaining mass of the radioactive substance after decay, a = Total time taken to decay, b = half life.

Given: R = 80 g, R' = 10 g, b = 2 days.

Substitute into equation 1

80/10 = 2⁽ᵃ/²⁾

8 = 2⁽ᵃ/²⁾

2³ = 2⁽ᵃ/²)

Equating the base and solving for a

3 = a/2

a = 2×3

a = 6 days.