The mass of a ⁴⁰Ca atom is 39.962591 u. Calculate the nuclear binding energy for this atom in MeV.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The nuclear binding energy can be calculated using the formula: E = Δm * c², where Δm is the mass defect. The mass defect is the difference between the mass of the nucleons and the actual mass of the nucleus. For ⁴⁰Ca, the mass of nucleons is approximately 40.078 u (20 protons and 20 neutrons), and the actual mass is 39.962591 u. The mass defect is 0.115409 u. Converting this to energy using 1 u = 931.5 MeV/c² gives approximately 342 MeV.

The Mass of a 40Ca Atom Is 39

The Mass of a ⁴⁰Ca Atom Is 39