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why is the mass number of an isotope always a whole number

by Porter Quigley Published 3 years ago Updated 2 years ago

Different isotopes of the same element have different mass numbers because their nuclei contain different numbers of neutrons. The symbol is read "uranium-238." The mass number is always a whole number; it is a count of the particles.

In the above example, isotope uranium-238 has 146 neutrons: 238 - 92.) The mass number is always a whole number; because it is a count of the particles. It differs from the exact mass of the atom
mass of the atom
A relative atomic mass (also called atomic weight; symbol: Ar) is a measure of how heavy atoms are. It is the ratio of the average mass per atom of an element from a given sample to 1/12 the mass of a carbon-12 atom.
https://simple.wikipedia.org › wiki › Relative_atomic_mass
in atomic mass units, amu, which is often known and expressed to six decimal places.

Full Answer

How do you calculate the relative atomic mass of isotopes?

  • Note that the relative atomic masses listed on the periodic table are average values for the associated element. ...
  • Relative atomic masses, as listed on the periodic table, are used to calculate molar masses for atoms and molecules. ...
  • For example, the atomic mass of iron is 55.847 amu, which means one mole of iron atoms would weigh 55.847 grams.

How do you calculate the abundance of isotopes?

How do you calculate the natural abundance of two isotopes? As a percent, the equation would be: (x) + (100-x) = 100, where the 100 designates the total percent in nature. If you set the equation as a decimal, this means the abundance would be equal to 1. The equation would then become: x + (1 – x) = 1. Note that this equation is limited to ...

Which of the following statements is true about isotopes?

Isotopes have an equal number of protons and an equal number of neutrons. Isotopes have the same number of protons but a different number of neutrons. Isotopes are variations of the same chemical element.

What is the average atomic mass of an isotope?

Calculating Average Atomic Mass Average atomic mass = f1M1 + f2M2 +… + fnMn where f is the fraction representing the natural abundance of the isotope and M is the mass number (weight) of the isotope. The average atomic mass of an element can be found on the periodic table, typically under the elemental symbol.

Is the mass of an isotope a whole number?

Is the mass of an isotope a whole number? Is the mass number a whole number? Yes, it is a whole number because it is the sum of the number of protons and neutrons in an atom.

Why is the mass number of an element a whole number but the atomic mass is not?

The atomic masses of most elements are not whole numbers, because they are a weighted average of the mass numbers of the different isotopes of that element, with respect to their abundances in nature.

Are isotopes whole numbers?

0:143:47Why Aren't All Atomic Masses Whole Numbers? | Properties of MatterYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipAs you look through the periodic. Table you may have noticed that not all atomic masses are writtenMoreAs you look through the periodic. Table you may have noticed that not all atomic masses are written as whole numbers elements can exist with slightly different numbers of neutrons. We call these

Why are mass numbers not whole round numbers and instead contain decimal places?

Because of the existence of isotopes.

Why are the atomic masses listed in the periodic table not whole numbers quizlet?

Why are atomic masses of elements not generally whole numbers? The atomic masses listed on the periodic table are a weighted AVERAGE of an element's isotopes.

Why is the mass number different in the two isotopes?

Different isotopes of an element have the same number of protons in the nucleus, giving them the same atomic number, but a different number of neutrons giving each elemental isotope a different atomic weight.

What is the mass number of an isotope?

Mass Number is the number of protons and neutrons in an isotope. This is a whole number. We use the mass number in naming isotopes, like Carbon-12 or Oxygen-17.

Why does the carbon − 12 isotope have a whole number mass but not the other isotopes?

The carbon-12 isotope has a whole-number mass because c. Carbon-12 is assigned a mass of exactly 12.00, and the mass of other isotopes is compared... See full answer below.

Which isotope has the same mass and mass number?

The only isotope whose atomic mass and mass number are the same is C-12. In order to calibrate a mass spectrometer to measure the mass of atoms, scientists had to come up with a standard to compare the mass of atoms to. They chose an atom of C-12 as the standard and assigned it a mass of exactly 12 atomic mass units (u).

Why is the atomic mass not a whole number?

The atomic mass is not a whole number even though the masses of protons and neutrons are whole numbers is because of the existence of the isotopes of the atoms of the same element. For example, the element hydrogen has three isotopes and they are hydogen-1 with a mass of 1, hydrogen-2 with a mass of 2 and hydrogen-3 with a mass of 3. The most abundant of these isotopes is hydrogen-1 and the other two isotopes are rarely found.

What does it mean when the number of neutrons is right?

When the number of neutrons is right then the nucleus is “stable ,” which mostly means that it won’t decay if you leave it alone, or at least it won’t decay very quickly. There are some elements where all isotopes are so unstable (no amount of neutrons is close enough to right) that no naturally occurring atoms exist because they decay too quickly. Technetium (atomic weight 43, atomic mass 98, half life 400ky) is the lightest element like that.

What does the atomic number mean?

Atomic number is the number of protons in the nucleus. Since this also determines the number of electrons a neutral atom has, the atomic number indicates the chemical element. In other words, all atoms with the same atomic number are the same chemical element.

What is the atomic mass of a nucleus?

The atomic mass is, generally speaking, the sum of neutrons and protons in the nucleus. Neutrons work via the weak nuclear force to hold the nucleus together against the electrostatic repulsion of the positively charged protons - the more protons a nucleus contains, the more neutrons are necessary to keep it stable. Different numbers of n

How do neutrons work?

Neutrons work via the weak nuclear force to hold the nucleus together against the electrostatic repulsion of the positively charged protons - the more protons a nucleus contains, the more neutrons are necessary to keep it stable. Different numbers of neutrons and the same number of protons is what we mean by isotopes of an element.

What is the mass number of an atom?

Mass number is just the number of protons + neutrons in an atom’s nucleus. However, each element has numerous isotopes, which are different forms of the same element (same number of protons) with different numbers of neutrons. The atomic mass is a weighted average of the mass numbers of naturally abundant isotopes of each element.

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