Chapter 19, Problem 35A

Interpretation Introduction

Interpretation: The energy released in nuclear reaction and chemical reaction are to be compared.

Concept introduction: Chemical reaction can be defined as a reaction where two or more molecules reacts or the atoms of same molecule reorganize themselves to form a completely new product. On the other hand, nuclear reaction can be defined as a reaction where the structure of the nucleus of an atom changes completely with the release of energy.

Answer to Problem 35A

Energy released in nuclear reaction is much higher than energy released in chemical reaction.

Explanation of Solution

In a chemical reaction is energy released is determined by relative energies of the starting materials and the product. If starting material is higher in energy than product then energy is release and the reaction is said to be exothermic.

Nuclear reactions occur at the level of the nucleus, which is very tightly bound by the strong nuclear force. For nuclear reactions, the energies of species is defined by the nuclear binding energies of each element. Nuclear binding energy can be defined as the energy needed to split a nucleus of an atom into its constituent subatomic particles protons and neutrons (together called nucleons).

The energy contained in a nuclear bond is on the order of 1Mev. A typical chemical bond, on the other hand, stores energy on the order of 1eV, which is approximately one million times less.

For example, splitting the nuclei of a gram of uranium gives one million times more energy than burning one gram of fossil fuel.

Conclusion

Energy released in nuclear reaction is much higher than energy released in chemical reaction.