Key Notes On Uses Of Isotopes

Isotopes are two or more types of atoms with the same atomic number (number of protons in their nuclei) and periodic table position (and so belong to the same chemical element) but distinct nucleon numbers (mass numbers) due to differing numbers of neutrons in their nuclei. While all isotopes of the same element have nearly identical chemical properties, their atomic weights and physical attributes differ.

The atomic number is the number of protons in the nucleus of an atom, which is equivalent to the number of electrons in a neutral (non-ionized) atom. Each atomic number identifies a specific element, but not an isotope; the number of neutrons in an atom of a given element can vary widely. The mass number of an atom is determined by the amount of nucleons (both protons and neutrons) in its nucleus, and each isotope of a particular element has a distinct mass number.

History Of Carbon- 14

Martin Kamen (1913–2002) and Samuel Ruben (1913–1943) were the first to find carbon-14 in 1940, using a cyclotron accelerator at the University of Berkeley’s California Radiation Laboratory. Libby and others conducted additional study, determining its half-life to be 5,568 years (later amended to 5,730 40 years), adding to Libby’s concept. However, no one had yet discovered carbon-14 in nature, thus Korff and Libby’s predictions concerning radiocarbon were only speculative at the time. Libby needed to demonstrate the existence of natural carbon-14 in order to verify his concept of radiocarbon dating, which was a big problem given the instruments available at the time.

At the time, no radiation-detection tool (such as a Geiger counter) could detect the trace amounts of carbon-14 necessary for Libby’s studies. Libby contacted Aristid von Grosse (1905–1985) of the Houdry Process Corporation, who was able to offer a carbon-14-enriched methane sample that could be detected using existing methods. Libby and Anderson confirmed the presence of naturally occurring carbon-14 using this sample and a standard Geiger counter, matching the concentration anticipated by Korff.

This strategy worked, but it was time-consuming and expensive. Libby’s squad, fortunately, devised a workaround. They encircled the sample chamber with a network of Geiger counters that were calibrated to detect and eliminate background radiation in the environment. The technique proved to be sufficiently sensitive when paired with a thick barrier that further decreased background radiation and a revolutionary way for reducing samples to pure carbon for testing. Finally, Libby had a way of putting his theory into action.

Carbon- 14 Uses in Medicine

Carbon is one of the most abundant elements on our planet, and its existence has been known to humanity since the dawn of time. Many of the world’s millions of identified carbon compounds are required for life as we know it. In truth, organic chemistry is a discipline of chemistry dedicated only to the study of carbon-containing chemical composition and reaction.

Carbon 13, carbon-13, and carbon-14 are the three isotopic versions of this stable sixth element on the periodic table. Each can be found in nature, but only one is particularly unstable. Carbon-14 is the most widely recognised isotope due to its radioactivity, with a half-life of 5,730 years. In comparison to its common radioactive siblings, carbon-14’s unmistakably slow decay rate is beneficial for modern studies.

In medicine, carbon-14 can be utilised as a radioactive tracer. In the first version of the urea breath test, urea tagged with roughly 37 kBq carbon-14 is fed to a patient as a diagnostic test for Helicobacter pylori. The bacterial urease enzyme breaks down urea into ammonia and radioactively-labeled carbon dioxide, which can be identified by low-level counting of the patient’s breath in the event of an H. pylori infection. The 14C urea breath test has mainly been replaced with the 13C urea breath test, which does not emit any radiation.

The vast majority of people are aware of the scientific usage of this radioisotope for carbon dating. The radioisotope’s half-life is unaffected by external environmental conditions, allowing it to operate as an internal clock to determine the age of various objects. This isotope is essential for radiopharmaceutical application in nuclear medicine because of its fundamental function and distinctive properties. Let’s take a closer look at C- 14’s previous usage in this industry. Here’s how these radioisotopes help with health-care research, diagnosis, and therapy.

Uses of Isotopes Of Carbon

C- 14 is a carbon isotope that is radioactive. Grosse found it as an undiscovered activity in the mineral endialyte in 1934. In the same year, Kurie (Yale) exposed nitrogen to fast neutrons in a bubble chamber and discovered extended trails. C- 14 had been created by him. Libby discovered it in atmospheric CO2in 1946. He calculated a half-life of 5568 years. Godwin was later able to recalculate this half-life. 5730 years is the new half-life. Libby realised that C- 14 may be used as a dating technique for materials that include carbon compounds produced from atmospheric CO2 via simple mixing processes or carbon exchange because of its natural abundance in natural materials.

The average life length of 8000 years is excellent for dating reservoirs that are a few decades to a few tens of thousands of years old. For groundwater, this means that C- 14 dating can be used on aquifers that contain water that was generated during glacial periods far in the past. For the Holocene and Pleistocene, C- 14 is a frequently utilised method for establishing chronologies for groundwater flow networks and climate records. 

The determination of the original C- 14 content of groundwater at the time of recharge, i.e., when groundwater is separated from exchange with the soil air and flows away from the water table, is a problem in C- 14 dating of groundwater.

Conclusion

Isotopes are chemical elements that have the same number of protons but differ in the number of neutrons they have. As a result, isotopes have different atomic masses but share the same chemical properties. Radioactive isotopes have proven beneficial to mankind in a variety of ways, but they have all put our lives in peril. Lead isotopes, for example, are extremely radioactive and have a direct impact on the brain and nervous system. Radioactive isotopes are the ones that have given a pay raise to a variety of dreadful and incurable diseases while also assisting us in their healing. This factor’s advantages and disadvantages cannot be compared.