A New Approach for Calculating the Alpha-Decay Half-Life for the Heavy and Super-heavy Elements and an Exact A Priori Result for Beyllium-8

Technical Report · Wed Mar 31 04:00:00 EDT 2021

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/1773479· OSTI ID:1773479

Surdoval, Wayne A. ^[1]; Berry, David A. ^[1]

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1. National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Morgantown, WV (United States)

A new general method for calculating the alpha decay half-life is presented. The method predicts an a priori exact value for the beryllium-8 half-life. Beryllium-8 is an exception to the current alpha decay theory captured in the Geiger-Nuttal law. The new method predicts the beryllium-8 alpha half-life using only constants and measured isotopic mass. The method also reliably predicts all the heavier isotope alpha decay half-lives consistent with the Geiger-Nuttal law. With respect to current theory, the inability of the Geiger-Nuttal Law to predict the alpha-decay half-life in the case of beryllium-8 has led to consideration of other decay mechanisms for this isotope, such as fission for example. One result is that given the consistency of the new method presented here for all isotopes including an exact a priori result for beryllium-8, the evidence strongly suggests that the beryllium-8 decay is in fact an alpha decay. A second result is that the method definitively demonstrates that the entire rest mass of the two helium-4 electrons is converted to energy in the decay process and this energy becomes part of the emitted alpha particle kinetic energy.

• Research Organization: National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), Pittsburgh, PA, Morgantown, WV, and Albany, OR (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Fossil Energy (FE)
• OSTI ID: 1773479
• Report Number(s): DOE/NETL--2021/2719
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
Alpha Decay
Beryllium-8
Geiger-Nuttal Law
Half-Life