Radioactive Elements

Radioactive elements are chemical elements that have the property of radioactivity. This means that their atoms can decay, releasing energy and emitting particles such as alpha particles, beta particles or gamma rays.

Radioactive elements can be either natural or artificial. Natural radioactive elements are found in the earth's crust, atmosphere and water. These include uranium, thorium, radium, potassium and other elements. Artificial radioactive elements are produced as a result of nuclear reactions.

The properties of radioactive elements can be used in various fields of science and technology. For example, they are used in medicine to diagnose and treat cancer, and in industry to produce various materials and devices.

However, radioactive elements can also pose a risk to human health. They can cause radiation exposure, which can lead to various illnesses and even death. Therefore, when working with radioactive elements, it is necessary to take precautions and use special protective equipment.

In conclusion, radioactive elements are an important element in science and technology, but their use should be limited and only done with all precautions.

Radioactive elements or radionuclides are artificially created nuclei that spontaneously decay due to radioactive chain decay of nuclei into more stable nuclei. In the periodic table of Mendeleev they are located outside the family of currently known stable atoms

Radioactive elements have always delighted people and frightened them at the same time. People have long learned to use them for their own purposes. But for many years, scientists could not understand what was the reason for this ability to decay, until in the 70s of the 20th century they managed to find the answer to this question. Now we know what happens around the nucleus of an element’s atom as a result of decay and what processes this concerns. Radiation cannot be held in your hands, and that is why it is difficult to understand such processes yourself, much less explain them to anyone. Therefore, radioactive substances still attract the attention of scientists. Physicists have discovered various types of radioactivity, the most common of which is alpha radiation.

History of radionuclides Today humanity has information about all known radioactive elements. But the history of their origin and receipt turned out to be very long. The history of radiation begins in the 14th century, when the first radioactive element was discovered, resulting from the fusion of nuclei of uranium atoms. The discovery was made by the French scientist Pascal Blaise Curie in 1896. This chemical element was named after the Curie brothers. The name was given to it 7 years later by their colleagues Antoine Sandin and Marie Curie. Later they identified two elements - uraninite and thorianite. They also had similar chemical properties and accordingly received their names from the corresponding minerals: uranium and thorium.