Find the energy released in the fusion reaction H+ 2^3 H → 2^4 He+e^++v

Name: Problem 33, Chapter 30: College Physics
Uploaded: 2021-08-11T10:26:44-08:00
Duration: 3 min 26 s
Channel: Declan Nell
Description: Find the energy released in the fusion reaction H+ 2^3 H → 2^4 He+e^++v

Find the energy released in the fusion reaction H+ 2^3 H →...

Key Concepts

Mass-Energy Equivalence

Mass-energy equivalence is the principle that mass can be converted into energy and vice versa, as expressed by Einstein's equation E = mc². This concept is fundamental in nuclear reactions where the conversion of a small amount of mass can result in a large release of energy.

Nuclear Fusion

Nuclear fusion is the process in which two light atomic nuclei combine to form a heavier nucleus, releasing energy. This process is central to the functioning of stars and is also a major area of research for achieving controlled energy production on Earth.

Mass Defect

The mass defect is the difference between the total mass of individual nucleons in a nucleus and the mass of the nucleus itself. This 'missing' mass has been converted into binding energy, which is released during fusion or fission reactions.

Nuclear Binding Energy

Nuclear binding energy is the energy that holds the nucleons together in a nucleus. The magnitude of this energy, calculated from the mass defect, determines the stability of the nucleus and is key to understanding the energy release in fusion processes.

Q-value of a Nuclear Reaction

The Q-value of a nuclear reaction is a measure of the net energy released or absorbed during the reaction. It is determined by the difference in mass-energy between the reactants and the products, serving as an essential indicator of the reaction's feasibility and energy output.

Transcript

00:01 Hello, and in this question here, we want to determine how much energy is released in this nuclear fusion.

00:07 And just to start off, i want to say that i think the question is incorrect when it says here that the number of protons it should have.

00:15 It says a two in the question that says a two.

00:18 I believe that this actually should be a one as it doesn't really make sense if it's not a one.

00:23 Okay.

00:24 So anyway, we want to determine the energy released in this process.

00:27 And to do this, we're going to use conservation of energy.

00:32 And the initial energy we have is equal to the rest mass energy of the hydrogen plus the rest mass energy of the tritium.

00:39 We use a subscript t for tritium.

00:42 And this is equal to the rest mass energy of the helium plus the rest mass energy of the electron plus the energy released.

00:50 Okay, and the energy released would be in the form of kinetic energy and yeah, it will be the kinetic energy of the electron, the electron neutrino, and the helium.

01:02 And we can also make the assumption that the mass of the electron neutrino is equal to zero.

01:10 We know it does have a mass, but we know that this mass is very, very small.

01:14 So in this case, it can be safely neglected.

01:18 Also, just for your note, the answer in the back of the book assumes that the mass, of the electron is equal to zero...

Please give Ace some feedback