Did you know that there are 118 elements on the periodic table? The first element appeared in the 1400’s This element was called bismuth. Since then there have been 117 other types of elements that have been discovered. Some of the elements that appear on the table are radioactive while others are not. There are many uses for all the elements on the table. However, the three most common radioactive elements that can generate energy and possible help find a cure for illnesses are uranium, plutonium ,and radium.
Uranium is a radioactive ore that, when enriched properly can give an entire city power. There are different types of uranium u-238 being the most common and widely used. Its atomic weight being 238 and number being 92 but there still is u-234 and u-235. How is uranium used and is it cost effective, well uranium is mined not created so before its fuel its in the earth. Mines all around dig up uranium. After it is mined it gets enriched with heavy water 2H2O water with a little more hydrogen. Then it its molded into uranium pellets which are then loaded into rods and then loaded into a nuclear reactor. But nuclear energy not the only use uranium is also used in atomic weapons, but after WWII Hiroshima they are illegal to use in a war. That use of an atomic weapon
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The half-life 1600 years, the atomic weight 226 and number 88. Some of the uses of radium range from medicine to selflumonius dials. Thats right, it glows! It is sometimes used in airplane cockpits and watches to make the dials glow at night. Radium mixed with some beryllium will emit neutrons and used as a neutron source. Also, just straight up radium will produce .00002 L of radon a gas that helps cure some forms of cancer. But too much radon can and will kill a human. So even with a tough flaw radium is it worth the time