Critical mass is the minimum amount of fissionable material that will sustain a chain reaction. This is the amount of material needed to achieve a self-sustaining nuclear reaction. Once this amount is reached and the chain reaction is sustained, additional fissionable material can be added to increase the reaction rate, but there is a limit to how much can be added before the reaction becomes unstable or explosive.

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Critical Mass Is

Question 77

Multiple Choice

Critical mass is

A) the minimum amount of fissionable material that will sustain a chain reaction.
B) the maximum amount of fissionable material that will sustain a chain reaction.
C) the amount of fissionable material that produces the most energy when split.
D) the largest amount of fissionable material that can be obtained from isotopic enrichment.

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