Radionuclide Production Quiz

Which statement is true about naturally occurring radionuclides like ⁴⁰K?

• They are widely used in modern medical diagnostics

• They have very short half-lives

• They are long-lived and have limited medical use

• They are external source of radiation.

What is the approximate half life of potassium 40 (⁴⁰K)?

• 1.25 million years

• 1.25 billion years

• 110 minutes

• 65.9 hours

How does a nuclear reactor maintain a controlled chain reaction?

• By using electric currents

• By ensuring each fission neutron induces one more fission

• By avoiding neutron production

• By using chemical cooling

Which of the following is a common moderator used in reactors?

• Heavy water (D₂O)

• Cadmium

• Uranium-235

• Technetium

Control rods in a reactor are used to:

• Heat the fuel

• Absorb neutrons and control the reaction

• Emit neutrons

• Cool the core

What is the energy released per fission event?

• ~2–3 MeV

• ~20–30 MeV

• ~200–300 MeV

• ~1 GeV

In the (n,γ) reaction, the nucleus:

• Emits a neutron

• Gains a neutron and emits a gamma ray

• Emits a proton

• Captures a proton

A major drawback of using fission fragments for radionuclide production is:

• They yield only one nuclide

• They produce low yield with many unwanted isotopes

• They are all carrier free

• They never decay

Which radionuclide is produced from ²³⁶U fission and used in Tc-99m generators?

• ¹³N

• ¹⁸F

• ⁹⁹Mo

• ³²P

In an (n,p) reaction, what changes occur?

• Mass number increases by 1, atomic number unchanged

• Atomic number decreases by 1, mass number unchanged

• Both atomic number and mass number change

• No change