Stay away, plutonium is explosive but it might save the day. It is a solid but not when it blows up, then it’s a gas and  is  very hot.  Plutonium is silver as a solid, but red as a gas, if you see red, you better run away fast.

 

 

USES AND REACTIONS

            There are many uses for Plutonium. The obvious use for Plutonium is in nuclear bombs. Plutonium is highly explosive and radioactive. One kilogram of Plutonium is equivalent to about 22 million kilowatt hours of heat energy. Plutonium has also been used as fuel for lunar equipment and fuel for space ships. Plutonium is extremely dangerous to humans and all living things because it has a high rate of emitting alpha particles that can be absorbed by the human body and create cancer.

Hazards
Since Plutonium is highly reactive it is very dangerous. It emits alpha particles when burned. These alpha particles can cause cancer among humans. Plutonium is also in nuclear bombs, which we all know are extremely dangerous. The bombs can decimate cities and towns, along with millions of people. Plutonium is highly toxic and can kill a human if breathed.

Properties
            Plutonium his very explosive and reactive, but it is seemingly harmless when not exploding. It is found made as a silver smooth metal. When it is a gas it turns yellow. Plutonium is harmless if you keep it outside your body. Plutonium looks a lot like other metals. It is never found in nature though, because it is made from Uranium and produced in a lab somewhere in California. Plutonium also has a lot of half- lifes, its longest one lasting 8 million years.

.HISTORY
Plutonium was first produced by Glenn T. Seaborg, Joseph W. Kennedy, Edward M. McMillan and Arthur C. Wohl. Plutonium was named after the planet (now asteroid) Pluto. These men created it at the University of California in Berkley, CA in 1941, but didn’t reveal it to the public until 1946. It was created by bombarding Uranium-238 with deuterons in a device known as a cyclotron. Plutonium can decay through spontaneous fission, making it very explosive and radioactive. Since Plutonium is so abundant now it is primarily used in nuclear weapons. Plutonium also can be found in trace quantities in naturally occurring uranium ores.

 

Putonium is made from Uranium, Neptunium is too.

 

Glossary
half life the amount of time it takes for half of the atoms in a sample to decay
alpha particles deadly particles emitted by radioactive elements
kilowatt hours a kilowatt hour is a measurement that is the amount of kilowatts that can burn in an hour

 

Bibliography
Nuclear Explosion http://philip9876.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/nuclear-explosion.jpg
Nuclear Bomb image http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/systems/images/mk17-bomb4.jpg
facts Plutonium. Jefferson Lab. <http://education.jlab.org/itselemental/ele094.html>
Glenn T. Seaborg http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/CalHistory/photos-large/seaborg.big.jpg
plutonium pellet http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/Plutonium_pellet.jpg

BY NATER BOUTWELL
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