Uranium

The page on uranium mining and its impacts has been moved to Uranium Mining.

Uranium-238

Natural decay chain of uranium-238

Uranium-238 is not only radiating itself but also produced a series of radioactive daughter elements which all are existing in the ore. The main problems for the surroundings of the ore are radium and radon, because radium binds easily to soluble substances and will be washed out by rain and goes to ground water. Radon is gaseous und leaves the mineral at open sur-faces and is in the air to be inhaled. Its half-life is only short, 3.8 days, but it is continuously produced again by radium.

Nuclide	Half-life	Radiation	Relative activity
Uranium 238	4,5 x 109 y	α γ	100
Th 234	24 d	β γ	100
Pa 234m	1,2 m	β γ	100
U 234	2,5 x 105 y	α γ	100
Th 230	8,0 x 104 y	α γ	100
Radium 226	1622 y	α γ	100
Radon 222	3,8 d	α	100
Po 218	3,05 m	α	100
Pb 214	26,8 m	β γ	100
Bi 214	19,7 m	β	100
Po 214	1,6 x 10-4 s	α γ	100
Tl 210	1,3 m	β γ	100
Pb 210	22 y	β γ	100
Bi 210	5,0 d	β	100
Po 210	138 d	α	100
Tl 206	4,2 m	β	100
Pb 206	stable

Finde more articles about Uranium on the Nuclear Heritage Network webpage.