Introduction to Half Life Calculator:
In the branch of nuclear chemistry, the half life equation calculator plays an important role in determining the decay of radioactive isotopes. Our half life problem solver is a powerful tool for knowing the half life of an element.
Whether it's a first order half life decay or a second order half life decay our half life formula calculator will find it for you explaining each step for free.
What is meant by half-life?
Half-life or half-life period is the time required to convert 50% of the reactant into products or decomposition of 50% of isotopes. An element or compound can take some seconds, minutes or years to decompose. For example, the half-life period of N2O5 at 45 C is 24 minutes meaning that it will take only 24 minutes for N2O5 to decompose 50% at 45 C.
Relevant: The stoichiometry of the reaction can be determined by our calculator for stoichiometry.
The formula of half-life used by half life problem solver:
The formula used to calculate half life varies from the order of the reaction which means it may be different for one reaction or different for another. The formula for finding first-order, second order, and third-order half-life reactions used by our half life calculator is:
[t1/2] = ln(2)/ƛ
The other formulas for finding the half life of radioactive elements are:
[t1/2]1 = 0.693/k
[t1/2]2 = 1/ka
[t1/2]3 = 1.5/ka2
Where, for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd order reaction the [t1/2]1,[t1/2]2, and [t1/2] 3 are the half life periods respectively and the “a” is used as an initial concentration or initial amount of the substance or the reaction.
Why is finding the half-life important?
Half-life is a time when half of the atoms in the radioactive material or a substance decay. Finding the half-life is important as it tells how the radioactive substances behave in different time zones. It helps us to predict the behavior a certain element has in the past. This information is important in various fields i.e., in medicine, nuclear energy environmental sciences, etc. It helps us in various ways,
- Knowing the time to store nuclear waste
- Knowing about the unknown isotopes
- Making safe medical treatments
It is also used to find the age of the organic compounds. For example, to identify the age of an organic compound scientists generally use Carbon-14 which helps them to calculate the exact age of an organic compound.
Calculation of time Elapsed using half life calculator with steps:
Half life calculations are tricky and take time but our half life decay calculator is here to help. But here we will give you some examples so you better understand how to calculate half-life manually,
Example 1:
If the initial concentration of HI is 0.05M and the rate constant is 0.079 dm^3 mol^-1s^-1 at 508 C having an expression of Rate = k[HI]2, then find the half-life period of the following reactions,
2HI ⇆ H2 + I2
Solution:
The rate constant shows that the reaction is second order so we will implement the 2nd order formula on the given reaction.
[t1/2]2 = 1/ ( 0.079 dm^3 mol^-1s^-1 * 0.050 mol dm^-3
[t1/2]2 = 253 seconds
Therefore, in 253 seconds half of HI which is 0.05/2 = 0.025 moles are decomposed.
Example 2:
If the decay constant of a substance is 0.96 s^-1. Then find the half life of the substance.
Solution:
We will implement the first-order reaction formula in it,
[t1/2]1 = 0.693/0.96
[t1/2]1 = 0.7seconds
So, it will take 0.7 seconds for the above substance to decay.
Decay Table of half-life:
The decay table of half-life of different radioactive elements is as follows,
Isotopes |
Half-life |
Decay Constant (per sec) |
Uranium 238 |
4.5 * 10^9 years |
5.0 * 10^-18 |
Plutonium 239 |
2.4 * 10^4 years |
9.2 * 10^-13 |
Carbon-14 |
5570 years |
3.9 * 10^-12 |
Radium 226 |
1622 Years |
1.35 * 10^-11 |
Free Neutron 239 |
15 minutes |
1.1 * 10^-3 |
Radon 220 |
52 seconds |
1.33 * 10^-2 |
Lithium 8 |
0.84 seconds |
0.825 |
Bismuth 214 |
1.6 * 10^-4 seconds |
4.33 * 10^3 |
Lithium 8 |
6 * 10^-20 seconds |
1.2 * 10^19 |
How to find a half life equation calculator?
You can find an online half life calculator by following some simple steps. access the Chrome tab and search for an online half-life calculator to get started with your search. Multiple half-life calculators can be found online there.
Whichever calculator that you wish to click on is accessible. You can also get help from our half-life calculator. What you need to start is to understand how to use it.
How to use a half life formula calculator?
You have found our half life calculator. Now you have to know the initial mass, total mass, and remaining mass of the radioactive substance. Therefore, You will type the data in the input section and after that click on the “calculate” button to initiate the calculations. Our half life equation calculator will automatically process the whole data and give you the right answer.
Benefits of using our half life formula calculator:
There are so many benefits that you will get if you choose our half life problem solver. So we are going to tell you those benefits,
- With our half life decay calculator, you can quickly find the answer. You will save your time if you do it.
- You can use the online tool at any moment that you desire.
- You can utilize our half-life calculator for absolutely free.
- Our calculator comes with an easy-to-understand user interface.
- because of its automatic nature, which eliminates the risk of human error, our half life calculator gives you accurate results.
Conclusion:
Determining the half life of different radioactive isotopes or elements is so hard to find but now our half life calculator is here to help. You can use it to find the half life of any element you just have to put the known values and it will give you the answer. Now your worries about such questions are gone.