Nuclear Equations Worksheet
1. Nuclei are often written in the form
i)
A
Z
X
.
What does the letter A represent?
____________________________________________________________
ii)
What does the letter Z represent?
____________________________________________________________
iii)
Iron (Fe) has an atomic number 26 and a mass number of 56. Write
down the nuclear formula for iron.
____________________________________________________________
2. Write down the nuclear symbols for alpha particles and beta particles.
Alpha particle _________________
Beta particle ________________
3. What is meant by the term ‘nuclear decay’?
_______________________________________________________________
4. Aluminium can be written as
i)
27
13
Al .
How many protons are in the aluminium nucleus?
____________________________________________________________
ii)
How many neutrons are in the aluminium nucleus?
____________________________________________________________
iii)
How many electrons are there in a neutral aluminium atom?
____________________________________________________________
5. Radon-222 decays into Polonium-218. Complete the nuclear equation by
inserting the correct numbers in the blank spaces.
222
86
Rn
__
__
Po  24
6. Lead-210 decay by emitting a beta particle. Complete the nuclear equation by
inserting the correct numbers in the blank spaces.
210
82
Pb
__
__
Bi  10