Determine the binding energy of a F-19 nucleus. The F-19 nucleus has a mass of 18.99840325 u. A proton has a mass of 1.00728 u, a neutron has a mass of 1.008665 u, and 1 u is equivalent to 931 MeV of energy.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The binding energy (BE) of a nucleus can be calculated using the formula:

BE = [Z(mass of a proton) + (A-Z)(mass of a neutron) - mass of the nucleus] x c^2

where Z is the atomic number, A is the mass number, and c is the speed of light.

For F-19 nucleus, Z = 9 and A = 19. Using the given mass values, we can calculate the mass of F-19 nucleus as follows:

mass of F-19 nucleus = (9 x 1.00728 u) + (19 - 9) x 1.008665 u = 18.998596 u

The BE of F-19 nucleus is then:

BE = [9(1.00728 u) + 10(1.008665 u) - 18.99840325 u] x (931 MeV/u)

BE = 143 MeV

Therefore, the correct answer is D.

Determine the Binding Energy of a F-19 Nucleus