A living specimen in equilibrium with the atmosphere contains one atom of 14C (half- life = 5 730 yr) for every 7.7 x 1011 stable carbon atoms. An archeological sample of wood (cellulose, C12H22011) contains 27 mg of carbon. When the sample is placed inside a shielded beta counter with 89% counting efficiency, 837 counts are accumulated in one week. Assuming that the cosmic-ray flux and the Earth's atmosphere have not changed appreciably since the sample was formed, find the age of the sample in the nearest year (1 yr ~ 3.1536 × 10 s). Take Avogadro Number to be NAVG =6.026x1o23 %3D

icon
Related questions
Question

i can confirm the answer 14700 years is wrong

A living specimen in equilibrium with the atmosphere contains one atom of 14C (half-
life = 5 730 yr) for
every 7.7 x 1011 stable carbon atoms. An archeological sample of wood (cellulose,
C12H22011) contains 27
mg of carbon. When the sample is placed inside a shielded beta counter with 89%
counting efficiency,
837 counts are accumulated in one week. Assuming that the cosmic-ray flux and the
Earth's atmosphere
have not changed appreciably since the sample was formed, find the age of the
sample in the nearest year (1 yr ~ 3.1536 x 10' s). Take Avogadro Number to be
NAVG =6.026x1023
Transcribed Image Text:A living specimen in equilibrium with the atmosphere contains one atom of 14C (half- life = 5 730 yr) for every 7.7 x 1011 stable carbon atoms. An archeological sample of wood (cellulose, C12H22011) contains 27 mg of carbon. When the sample is placed inside a shielded beta counter with 89% counting efficiency, 837 counts are accumulated in one week. Assuming that the cosmic-ray flux and the Earth's atmosphere have not changed appreciably since the sample was formed, find the age of the sample in the nearest year (1 yr ~ 3.1536 x 10' s). Take Avogadro Number to be NAVG =6.026x1023
Expert Solution
steps

Step by step

Solved in 2 steps

Blurred answer