Describe radioactive decay chains. What are radioactive decay chains? Potassium-40 is a radioactive isotope that has a half-life of 1.25 billion years. The daughter isotope of potassium-40 is argon-40. What is the approximate age of an igneous rock that has a 1:3 ratio of potassium-40 atoms to argon-40 atoms? What are radioactive decay chains? Potassium-40 is a radioactive isotope
What is the percent of potassium-40 to argon-40?
10.72% In about 10.72% of events, it decays to argon-40 (40Ar) by electron capture (EC), with the emission of a neutrino and then a 1.460 MeV gamma ray.
What is the daughter isotope of potassium-40?
Argon-40 Another important atomic clock used for dating purposes is based on the radioactive decay of the isotope carbon-14, which has a half-life of 5,730 years .RADIOMETRIC TIME SCALE.Parent IsotopeStable Daughter ProductCurrently Accepted Half-Life ValuesPotassium-40Argon-401.25 billion yearsSamarium-147Neodymium-143106 billion years4 more rows•13 Jun 2001
What is the half-life of argon-40?
35 days Argon-37 is produced from the decay of calcium-40, the result of subsurface nuclear explosions. Its half-life is 35 days .Related Links•Periodic Table•Fundamentals of Stable Isotope Geochemistry•General References•Isotope Publications
How long is the half-life of potassium-40?
The half-life of potassium-40 that decays through beta emission is 1.28 × 109 years, however the half-life of potassium-40 that decays through positron emission is 1.19 × 1010 years.
Is argon 40 Stable?
Argon (Ar) has three natural isotopes with masses 36, 38, and 40. Ar and 38Ar are stable, that is, they are not radioactive, and they are also not produced by radioactivity processes.