It's often mentioned with regard to nuke fuels & war & radiation but, please excuse my complete ignorance of it, because I don't even know if it is solid, liquid or gas.
2007-09-29 01:26:27 · 10 answers · asked by Kitty Katty 4 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Chemistry
It is an element. It is found in a solid state normally. Most of the plutonium found comes as a by product of the producing energy (usually) of Uranium. It is an unstable element, meaning it has a halflife or will 'breakdown' over time. It is used for nukes because it is comparatively easy to break apart it's nuclear bonds, meaning it is easier than most other elements to make explode.
I know this is a simplified explanation but without going totally geeky I think this will help you out.
2007-09-29 01:31:55 · answer #1 · answered by ellusionary 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Hi
Since you say your ignorant I wont go into scientific detail, just some simple facts.
Plutonium is an element, its a metal.
It is a very heavy metal, much heavier than lead!
It is radioactive, but only weakly (weak alpha, beta emitter)
It is extremely poisonous, a pollen size partice will cause lung cancer.
It is fissionable - that means it can undergo a nuclear reaction.
It is used to make nuclear weapons - now a days, it is the fuel of choice in nuclear weapons.
A peice of plutonium the size of an orange can release ten times the energy of the Hiroshima bomb.
Contact me if you need more detailed infomation and, by the way, dont call your self ignorant - we are all hear to learn!!
2007-09-30 04:35:14 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is a solid, a metal to be specific. It is a heavy, "artificial" element. By artificial, I mean that it only occurs in very small amounts in nature. Humanity has learned how to produce large quantities of it in specially designed nuclear reactors called "breeder reactors". It is used in nuclear weapons because it is easier to induce a fission reaction in Plutonium than in Uranium, and Plutonium also gives a higher energy yield. It is very radioactive, and also very toxic. In general, I would not recommend using Plutonium around the house, even if it does leave the dishes spot free and the carpet smelling fresh.
2007-09-29 01:35:30 · answer #3 · answered by That Guy 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Plutonium, symbol Pu, radioactive metallic element that is used in nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons. The atomic number of plutonium is 94. The element is one of the transuranium elements in the actinide series of the periodic table.
Isotopes of plutonium were first prepared by the American chemist Glenn T. Seaborg and his associates at the University of California at Berkeley in 1940. Trace amounts of the element have since been found in uranium ores, but plutonium is prepared in relatively large quantities today in nuclear reactors.
Chemically, plutonium is reactive, its properties somewhat resembling those of the rare earth elements. The silvery metal, which becomes slightly yellow through oxidation caused by exposure to air, exists in six varying crystalline forms and has four different oxidation states. The metal gives off heat because of its radioactivity; 15 different isotopes of plutonium, ranging in mass number from 232 to 246, are known. Plutonium melts at about 641° C (about 1186° F), boils at about 3232° C (about 5850° F), and has a specific gravity of 19.84.
The most important isotope, plutonium-239, has a half-life of 24,360 years, and is produced by bombarding uranium-238 with slow neutrons. This forms neptunium-239, which in turn emits a beta particle and forms plutonium-239. Plutonium is the most economically important of the transuranium elements because plutonium-239 readily undergoes fission and can be both used and produced in quantity in nuclear reactors (see Nuclear Energy). It is also used in making nuclear weapons. It is an extremely hazardous poison due to its high radioactivity. Plutonium-238 has been used to power equipment on the moon by means of the heat it emits.
2007-09-29 01:35:57 · answer #4 · answered by trey98607 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A naturally radioactive, silvery, metallic transuranic element, occurring in uranium ores and produced artificially by neutron bombardment of uranium. Its longest-lived isotope is Pu 244 with a half-life of 76 million years. It is a radiological poison, specifically absorbed by bone marrow, and is used, especially the highly fissionable isotope Pu 239, as a reactor fuel and in nuclear weapons. Atomic number 94; melting point 640°C; boiling point 3,235°C; specific gravity 19.84; valence 3, 4, 5, 6.
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/plutonium
2007-09-29 01:35:53 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Plutonium (IPA: /ˌpluːˈtəʊniəm/) is a radioactive, metallic chemical element. It has the symbol Pu and the atomic number 94. It is the element used in most modern nuclear weapons. The most significant isotope of plutonium is 239Pu, with a half-life of 24,100 years. It can be made from natural uranium and is fissile. The most stable isotope is 244Pu, with a half-life of about 80 million years, long enough to be found in extremely small quantities in nature. In fact, 244Pu is the nucleon-richest atom that naturally occurs in the Earth's crust, albeit in small traces
Other information please check here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plutonium
2007-09-29 01:30:57 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Wipe it off with a paper towel, at least try to and do so with your bare hands. Something cool is gonna happen.
2016-05-21 03:54:55 · answer #7 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's a radioactive element.
2007-09-29 01:29:44 · answer #8 · answered by Melissa Me 7 · 0⤊ 2⤋
metal
2007-09-29 01:35:35 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
mickey mouse's favourite element...
2007-09-29 01:36:32 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋