Chemistry, asked by atanu2, 1 year ago

what are the uses of plutonium

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Answered by FIREBIRD
28
The most important uses of plutonium depend on two of its properties. First, the radiation given off by plutonium occurs as heat. In fact, plutonium gives off so much heat that the metal feels warm when it is touched. If a large piece of plutonium is placed into water, the heat released can cause the water to boil.

Plutonium provides electrical power on space probes and space vehicles.

This property makes plutonium a good choice for certain thermoelectric generator applications. A thermoelectric generator is a device that converts heat into electricity. Plutonium generators are not practical on a large scale basis. But they are very desirable for special conditions. For example, they have been used to provide electrical power on space probes and space vehicles. They have also been used in artificial pacemakers for people with heart conditions. The isotope most commonly used for this application is plutonium-238 because the radiation it gives off does not pose a threat to people's health.

Plutonium is also used as a fuel in nuclear power plants and in making nuclear weapons ("atomic bombs"). The isotope used for this purpose is plutonium-239. It is used because it will undergo nuclear fission. Very few isotopes will undergo nuclear fission. Two isotopes of uranium, uranium-233 and uranium-235, are among these. But uranium-233 does not occur at all in nature and uranium-235 occurs in only very small amounts.

production of plutonium fuel (plutonium-239)

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