I have this problem that i cannot figure out. Rubidium has a stable isotope with 48 neutrons and a mass number of 85. Rubidium also has an unstable isotope with 49 neutrons and a mass number of 86. The stable isotope has a relative abundance of 72.17% and an atomic mass of 84.9117 amu. What is the atomic mass of the unstable isotope?
could someone show me how to work this out...i tried two different ways to solve it, but i got two completely different answers, so i really don't know what to do now! Thanks!!!
2007-07-19 15:57:45 · 1 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Chemistry
You usually don't count unstable isotopes unless their half-life is extremely long. The mass numbers approximate the amu numbers since there is a certain binding strength reflected in the amu. Are you sure there aren't some other stable isotopes like 84 and 87?
2007-07-19 16:05:03 · answer #1 · answered by cattbarf 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋