Trace radioisotope

Short description: Radioisotope that occurs naturally in trace amounts

A trace radioisotope is a radioisotope that occurs naturally in trace amounts (i.e. extremely small). Generally speaking, trace radioisotopes have half-lives that are short in comparison with the age of the Earth, since primordial nuclides tend to occur in larger than trace amounts. Trace radioisotopes are therefore present only because they are continually produced on Earth by natural processes. Natural processes which produce trace radioisotopes include cosmic ray bombardment of stable nuclides, ordinary alpha and beta decay of the long-lived heavy nuclides, thorium-232, uranium-238, and uranium-235, spontaneous fission of uranium-238, and nuclear transmutation reactions induced by natural radioactivity, such as the production of plutonium-239[1] and uranium-236[2] from neutron capture[3] by natural uranium.

## Elements

The elements that occur on Earth only in traces are listed below.

Element name | Chemical
Symbol

|

Technetium | Tc
Promethium | Pm
Polonium | Po
Astatine | At
Radon | Rn
Francium | Fr
Radium | Ra
Actinium | Ac
Protactinium | Pa
Neptunium | Np
Plutonium | Pu

Isotopes of other elements (not exhaustive):

* Tritium
* Beryllium-7
* Beryllium-10
* Carbon-14
* Fluorine-18
* Sodium-22
* Sodium-24
* Magnesium-28
* Silicon-31
* Silicon-32
* Phosphorus-32
* Sulfur-35
* Sulfur-38
* Chlorine-34m
* Chlorine-36
* Chlorine-38
* Chlorine-39
* Argon-39
* Argon-42
* Calcium-41
* Iron-52
* Cobalt-55
* Nickel-59
* Copper-60
* Germanium-64
* Selenium-79
* Krypton-81
* Strontium-90
* Rhodium-105

## References

1. ↑ Curtis, David; Fabryka-Martin, June; Paul, Dixon; Cramer, Jan (1999). "Nature's uncommon elements: plutonium and technetium". Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 63 (2): 275–285. doi:10.1016/S0016-7037(98)00282-8. Bibcode: 1999GeCoA..63..275C. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc704244/.
2. ↑ "Technical sheet about (nuclear) mass spectrometry". http://esarda2.jrc.it/references/Technical_sheets/ts-mass-spectrometry-071212.pdf.
3. ↑ Wilcken, K.~M.; Barrows, T. T.; Fifield, L. K.; Tims, S. G.; Steier, P. (June 2007). "AMS of natural 236 U and 239Pu produced in uranium ores". Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B 259 (1): 727–732. doi:10.1016/j.nimb.2007.01.210. Bibcode: 2007NIMPB.259..727W.

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Periodic table

Periodic table forms|

| Standard|

* 18-column
* 32-column

|

Alternative|

* Alternatives
* Janet's left step table

Extended|

* Extension beyond the 7th period
* Aufbau
* Fricke
* Pyykkö

Sets of elements|

| By periodic table structure|

| Groups|

* 1 (Alkali metals)
* 2 (Alkaline earth metals)
* 3
* 4
* 5
* 6
* 7
* 8
* 9
* 10
* 11
* 12
* 13
* 14
* 15 (Pnictogens)
* 16 (Chalcogens)
* 17 (Halogens)
* 18 (Noble gases)

|

Periods|

* 1
* 2
* 3
* 4
* 5
* 6
* 7
* 8+
* Aufbau
* Fricke
* Pyykkö

Blocks|

* s-block
* p-block
* d-block
* f-block
* g-block
* Aufbau principle

By metallicity|

| Metals|

* Alkali metals
* Alkaline earth metals
* Lanthanides
* Actinides
* Transition metals
* Post-transition metals

|

Metalloids|

* Lists of metalloids by source
* Dividing line

Nonmetals|

* Reactive nonmetals
* Noble gases

Other sets|

* Platinum-group metals (PGM)
* Rare-earth elements
* Refractory metals
* Precious metals
* Coinage metals
* Noble metal
* Heavy metals
* Native metals
* Transuranium elements
* Superheavy elements
* Major actinides
* Minor actinides

Elements|

| Lists|

* By: Abundance (in humans)
* Atomic properties
* Nuclear stability
* Production
* Symbol

|

Properties|

* Crystal structure
* Electron configuration
* Electronegativity
* Goldschmidt classification
* Term symbol

Data pages|

* Abundance
* Atomic radius
* Boiling point
* Critical point
* Density
* Elasticity
* Electrical resistivity
* Electron affinity
* Electron configuration
* Electronegativity
* Hardness
* Heat capacity
* Heat of fusion
* Heat of vaporization
* Ionization energy
* Melting point
* Oxidation state
* Speed of sound
* Thermal conductivity
* Thermal expansion coefficient
* Vapor pressure

History|

* Element discoveries
* Mendeleev's predictions
* Naming
* etymology
* controversies
* for places
* for people
* in East Asia

See also|

* IUPAC
* nomenclature
* systematic element name
* Trivial name
* Dmitri Mendeleev

* Book
* Category

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