Nuclear Binding Energy

The nucleus is the core of every atom, and it is constituted of two elements called neutrons and protons. Nuclear energy is a type of energy released from the nucleus. This nuclear energy is generally released either by fission or fusion. 

Nuclear fission takes place when the nucleus of an atom splits into different parts. On the other hand, nuclear fusion occurs when different nuclei fuse. 

Nuclear fusion is a worldwide popular method to derive nuclear energy from nuclei. Electricity production is the ideal example of nuclear energy generation. Nuclear fission is not far behind and is also a useful way to extract nuclear energy. 

A brief history of nuclear energy

In 1938, nuclear energy was first discovered through nuclear fission. At the Argonne National Laboratory, EBR-1 nuclear energy was witnessed through lighting up bulbs. 

This discovery of nuclear energy took more than four decades of research in radioactivity and nuclear physics. After confirming Argonne National Laboratory’s experiment in 1939, different scientists from multiple countries urged their governments to support nuclear fission experiments. 

Now, almost every country has its nuclear energy plants. Therefore, nuclear energy in everyday life has become an integral part of today’s world. Soviet Russia, the United States, and China have larger energy plants than other countries. 

Nuclear binding energy

The energy which is required to dismantle a nucleus into free unbound neutrons and vibrational protons is essentially the nuclear binding energy. The energy is equivalent to the mass defect, the difference between its measured mass and the amount of mass in a nucleus. Nuclear binding energy is usually found when the mass defect is measured, usually by changing the mass into energy by applying the formula E = mc². Nuclear binding energy can be used when the nucleus splits into various fragments consisting of more than one nucleon. These fragments have positive or negative binding energy based on the position of the parent nucleus on the nuclear binding energy curve. When a heavy nucleus splits or fuses with another light nucleus, one of these processes releases binding energy.

Variation of nuclear binding energy with mass number:

The nuclear binding energy of an atom is directly related to the mass of the atom. The higher the mass number of an atom, the higher the nuclear binding energy. For example, a nitrogen-14 atom has a significantly higher nuclear binding energy than a nitrogen-15 atom, even though both atoms have the same mass.

Bond energy or bond dissociation energy

Bond energy is the chemical potential of the electrons in an atom. The chemical potential of an electron is specified by the chemical element it belongs to, and is equal to the amount of energy needed to remove that many electrons from the atom. The chemical potential of the electrons in an atom is collectively referred to as the bond energy of the atom. The bond energy of an atom is a major factor in determining the properties of the atom, and also plays a major role in determining the chemical species that the atom forms. The energy stored in bonds is a result of the electromagnetic force and the weak nuclear force. The strength of bonds also depends on the degree of electronegativity of the atoms involved. For example, the strongest bonds are formed when two electronegative atoms, such that electrons are shared, such as in the covalent bond.

Conclusion

Nuclear binding energy is the energy required to bring a nucleus from its most stable configuration to a less stable configuration. Nuclear binding energy is inversely proportional to the size of the nucleus. Binding energy is of various types—electron binding energy, atomic binding energy, and nuclear binding energy. Each of them operates over a different distance and over a different energy scale. The chemical potential of the electrons in an atom is collectively referred to as the bond energy of the atom. The bond energy is a major factor in determining the properties of the atom, and also plays a major role in determining the chemical species that the atom forms.