Ores and Radiation

By William Lamb, Sacha Mama-Kahn, Oliver WHICH IS THE BEST SOURCE OF ENERGY? Mulvuy, Hunain Nadeem, Ria Pandit Ore Torbernite (1) Betafite (2) Cuprosklodowskite Pitchblende (3) (4) % Uranium 65 59 60 88 Hypothesis Method Mass (g) 2.69 0.97 0.66 2.36 Based on the masses of the ores 1. Weigh ores Energy measure 1 (KeV) 57000 11000 75000 345000 and the % of Uranium in the 2. Draw up and record into table Energy measure 2 (KeV) 58000 9750 77000 275000 substances, we hypothesise that the 3. Set up apparatus 4. Take plastic cover off Energy measure 3 (KeV) 58000 12250 74250 230000 ore that produces the most energy is 5. Measure energy for 120 seconds for the first ore Energy measure 4 (KeV) 60500 11250 75500 235000 Pitchblende because it contains the 6. Record, correcting for background radiation Energy measure 5 (KeV) 56000 11750 75000 180000 most uranium, and the ore with the 7. Repeat for each ore least energy is Betafite. 8. Repeat the whole experiment and find averages for each ore Average (KeV) 57900 11200 75350 253000 Minus background 55855 9155 73305 250955 radiation Energy/gram (KeV/g) 20763.9405 9438.144 111068.2 107203.4

Torbernite Betafite Cuprosklodowskite Pitchblende Torbernite, whose name derives from the Swedish Betafite is a in the pyrochlore group. Betafite Cuprosklodowskite is a secondary uranium mineral Pitchblende is a radioactive, uranium-rich mineral chemist Torbern Bergman (1735-1784), is a typically occurs as a primary mineral in granite formed by alteration of earlier uranium . It and ore. It has a chemical composition that is largely radioactive, hydrated green copper pegmatites, rarely in carbonatites. Betafite was is grass green to dark green in colour, and its crystal UO2, but also contains UO3 and oxides of mineral, found in granites and other uranium-bearing discovered in 1912 at Betafo, Madagascar. The ore habit is typically acicular, flat bladed crystals. It is a lead, thorium, and rare earth elements. The ore we deposits as a secondary mineral. The ore we used was we used was found in Madagascar. strongly radioactive mineral. The ore we used was used was found in Wheal Edward, St Just, Cornwall. found in Musonoi, Katanga, Congo. found in Musonoi, Katanga, Congo. UO2 M : 270 Cu (UO2)2(PO4)2 (Ca,U)2(Ti,Nb,Ta)2O6(OH) Cu(UO2)2(HSiO4)2 r Mr: 730 Mr: 803.67 Mr: 790

50 30 50 60 Graph showing energy emitted Graph showing energy emitted 45 Graph showing energy emitted Graph showing energy emitted 25 50 40 40

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10 Frequency 20

Frequency Frequency Frequency 15 10 5 10 10 5 0 0 0 0 0 50 100 150 200 250 0 50 100 150 200 250 -5 0 50 100 150 200 250 0 50 100 150 200 250 -10 -5 -10 Energy (KeV) Energy (KeV) Energy (KeV) Energy (KeV) Conclusion: From our results we’ve found that Cuprosklodowskite is the most radioactive ore and therefore the best source of energy. We found that all the ores emitted similar levels of radiation (as seen on the graphs). This is because the ores were similar in that they all contained the same radioactive element: Uranium. Due to this we weren’t able to work out the most radioactive ore. Therefore we decided to work out radiation levels per gram (KeV/g) in order to get a Bibliography more accurate understanding of which ore emitted the most energy. This ore turned out to be Cuprosklodowskite which emitted 111068.2 KeV/g. Our weakest ore in terms of energy was Betafite which only emitted 9438 KeV/g. In •Wrightsrockshop.com 3rd place came Torbernite which emitted 20763.9 KeV/g. Pitchblende came a close 2nd emitting 107203.4 KeV/g. This last result came as a surprise. We hypothesised that Pitchblende would in fact be the most active ore which •Flickr.com turned out not to be true. Our hypothesis was backed up by some results however as Betafite did indeed turn out to be the least active ore. •Tumblr.com •Wikipedia.com Evaluation: •Irocks.com Our results for Pitchblende (and our results overall) were surprising. This is due to the figures we calculated for uranium content in each ore. In Pitchblende the overall uranium content was 88% whereas in Cuprosklodowskite this was 60%, also lower than some of the other ores we tested. The fact that Cuproslodowskite turned out to be the most radioactive ore tells us that our Pitchblende ore may have been older than our Cuproslodowskite ore. We may also say that our Pitchblende ore may not have been as pure as we expected it to be (this may be again because of its age). Looking back on our experiment we could’ve ensured all our ores were of similar mass as we had a range from 0.66 – 2.69 grams. This relatively large range could’ve been a factor in the outcome of our results. We could have also ensured that our ores were of similar age before we started the experiment as some ores may have been older and therefore contain less radioactive material compared to a newer ore which may have gone through less radioactive decay in its lifetime.