Problem 4: Calculate the total energy released if 1 kg of U235 undergoes fission. Taking the disintegration energy per event to be Q = 208 MeV.
Solution
Theory
Fission means splitting or dividing. Nuclear fission is the process in which a nucleus of an atom splits into two or more smaller nuclei as product and usually some other by product particles.
Now given mass of Uranium = 1 kg
Molecular mass of Uranium = 285 u
Therefore, 235 kg of Uranium = 1 kilo mol
1 kg of Uranium = (1/235) kmol = 0.004255 kmol
Similarly, by Avogadro’s law, 1 kmol = 6.023 × 1026 atoms
⇒ 0.004255 kmol = 0.004255 × 6.023 × 1026 = 0.025629 × 1026 atoms
Now energy released per event (atom) = 208 MeV
Energy released for 0.025629 × 1026 atoms = 208 × 0.025629 × 1026 = 5.32 × 1026 MeV
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