Student Exploration: Nuclear Reactions
Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.)
The chart below gives the isotope name, element name, number of protons,
and number of neutrons of three isotopes.
Isotope Protons Neutrons
Hydrogen-1 1 0
Carbon-12 6 6
Uranium-235 92 143
1. What do you notice about the isotope number and the sum of protons and
The isotope number is equal to the sum of protons and neutrons.
neutrons?
2. The element symbol for uranium-238
92
is 238 U. This means U-238 has a total mass of
238 and
contains 92 protons. Write the element symbols for the isotopes in the table:
Hydrogen-1 1 H 6
C 235
1
Carbon-12 12
Uranium- 92
U
235
Gizmo Warm-up
The Nuclear Reactions Gizmo simulates a particle
accelerator. Particle accelerators speed up atoms to very
high velocities, then crash the atoms together with enough
energy to cause changes called nuclear reactions. There are
three particle beams available in this Gizmo, protons,
neutrons, and helium-3 nuclei.
1. Click Fire Proton to engage the first particle beam. What happens?
The proton joins the nucleus.
2. Colliding particles don’t always react. Click Reset, and then click Fire neutron.
A. Does a reaction occur?
No
B. Explain:
The neutron traveled through the nucleus.
, Student Exploration: Nuclear Reactions
Introduction: All stars turn hydrogen into helium in a process called nuclear fusion.
Stars perform this process in different ways. In stars like our sun, the proton-
proton chain is used. This reaction requires temperatures greater than 4,000,000
K to occur.
Question: How does the process of fusion turn hydrogen into helium in stars?
1. Observe: Click Fire proton and observe. What happens after the proton
merges into the nucleus?
Proton is converted to a neutron, and a positron is emitted.
This is a form of nuclear decay called positron emission. During positron emission, a
proton decays into a neutron. In this process, it emits a positron, which is a nearly
massless antimatter particle with a positive charge.
2. Observe: Click Reset and click Fire proton. Observe what happens. Many
subatomic particles appear frequently in nuclear reactions. Their element
symbols are given below:
(Neutrinos are also produced but are beyond the scope of this Gizmo.)
Click Reset and click Fire proton. Turn on the Write equation checkbox. Based on
what you have observed, write in the equation for this reaction in the Gizmo and
below. (Double click the image below to open in Google Draw. Use the Text Box tool
to fill in the boxes)
A. Turn on Show equation. Was your predicted equation correct?
yes
Correct your equation if necessary. The resulting H-2 isotope is called
Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.)
The chart below gives the isotope name, element name, number of protons,
and number of neutrons of three isotopes.
Isotope Protons Neutrons
Hydrogen-1 1 0
Carbon-12 6 6
Uranium-235 92 143
1. What do you notice about the isotope number and the sum of protons and
The isotope number is equal to the sum of protons and neutrons.
neutrons?
2. The element symbol for uranium-238
92
is 238 U. This means U-238 has a total mass of
238 and
contains 92 protons. Write the element symbols for the isotopes in the table:
Hydrogen-1 1 H 6
C 235
1
Carbon-12 12
Uranium- 92
U
235
Gizmo Warm-up
The Nuclear Reactions Gizmo simulates a particle
accelerator. Particle accelerators speed up atoms to very
high velocities, then crash the atoms together with enough
energy to cause changes called nuclear reactions. There are
three particle beams available in this Gizmo, protons,
neutrons, and helium-3 nuclei.
1. Click Fire Proton to engage the first particle beam. What happens?
The proton joins the nucleus.
2. Colliding particles don’t always react. Click Reset, and then click Fire neutron.
A. Does a reaction occur?
No
B. Explain:
The neutron traveled through the nucleus.
, Student Exploration: Nuclear Reactions
Introduction: All stars turn hydrogen into helium in a process called nuclear fusion.
Stars perform this process in different ways. In stars like our sun, the proton-
proton chain is used. This reaction requires temperatures greater than 4,000,000
K to occur.
Question: How does the process of fusion turn hydrogen into helium in stars?
1. Observe: Click Fire proton and observe. What happens after the proton
merges into the nucleus?
Proton is converted to a neutron, and a positron is emitted.
This is a form of nuclear decay called positron emission. During positron emission, a
proton decays into a neutron. In this process, it emits a positron, which is a nearly
massless antimatter particle with a positive charge.
2. Observe: Click Reset and click Fire proton. Observe what happens. Many
subatomic particles appear frequently in nuclear reactions. Their element
symbols are given below:
(Neutrinos are also produced but are beyond the scope of this Gizmo.)
Click Reset and click Fire proton. Turn on the Write equation checkbox. Based on
what you have observed, write in the equation for this reaction in the Gizmo and
below. (Double click the image below to open in Google Draw. Use the Text Box tool
to fill in the boxes)
A. Turn on Show equation. Was your predicted equation correct?
yes
Correct your equation if necessary. The resulting H-2 isotope is called
