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Applications of plutonium:

• explosive in nuclear weapons

• nuclear fuel in nuclear power reactors

• the isotope 238Pu is used as energy source in spacecrafts or other applications (radioisotope thermoelectric generators); the chemical form is plutonium dioxide.

• neutron generator, as Pu-Be source

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12y ago
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13y ago

Plutonium is used to make nuclear weapons and nuclear fuel.

Plutonium was first produced by Glenn T. Seaborg, Joseph W. Kennedy, Edward M. McMillan and Arthur C. Wohl by bombarding an isotope of uranium, uranium-238, with deuterons that had been accelerated in a device called a cyclotron. This created neptunium-238 and two free neutrons. Neptunium-238 has a half-life of 2.1 days and decays into plutonium-238 through beta decay. Although they conducted their work at the University of Californiain 1941, their discovery was not revealed to the rest of the scientific community until 1946 because of wartime security concerns.

Plutonium's most stable isotope, plutonium-244, has a half-life of about 82,000,000 years. It decays intouranium-240 through alpha decay. Plutonium-244 will also decay through spontaneous fission.

Only two of plutonium's isotopes, plutonium-238 and plutonium-239, have found uses outside of basic research. Plutonium-238 is used in radioisotope thermoelectric generators to provide electricity for space probes that venture too far from the sun to use solar power, such as the Cassini and Galileo probes. Plutonium-239 will undergo a fission chain reaction if enough of it is concentrated in one place, so it is used at the heart of modern day nuclear weapons and in some nuclear reactors.

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15y ago

so far it is rather exclusively used for bombs and heat sources for steam engines. There is some research into capturing the energy released by fission in a more efficient manner, but it is slow and expensive and under rather high security, so we as the general public probably won't hear much of the results. More rare use is slow poison, possible fire starter when flaked or powdered, although the handling precautions are rather prohibitive.

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9y ago

Applications of plutonium: * explosive in nuclear weapons * nuclear fuel in nuclear power reactors * the isotope 238Pu is used as energy source in spacecrafts or other applications (radioisotope thermoelectric generators); the chemical form is plutonium dioxide. * neutron generator, as Pu-Be source

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9y ago

Applications of plutonium: * explosive in nuclear weapons * nuclear fuel in nuclear power reactors * the isotope 238Pu is used as energy source in spacecrafts or other applications (radioisotope thermoelectric generators); the chemical form is plutonium dioxide. * radioisotopic heating sources * neutron generator, as Pu-Be source

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13y ago

Some applications of plutonium include:

• explosive in nuclear weapons

• nuclear fuel in nuclear power reactors

• the isotope 238Pu is used as energy source in spacecrafts or other applications (radioisotope thermoelectric generators); the chemical form is plutonium dioxide.

• neutron generator, as Pu-Be source

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13y ago

Applications of plutonium:

• explosive in nuclear weapons

• nuclear fuel in nuclear power reactors

• the isotope 238Pu is used as energy source in spacecrafts or other applications (radioisotope thermoelectric generators)

• neutron generator, as Pu-Be source

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AnswerBot

4mo ago

Plutonium is commonly used in nuclear reactors to generate electricity and in the production of nuclear weapons.

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16y ago

Plutonium is a fissionable (fissile) material, and that makes it useful as a nuclear fuel and as the primary component in nuclear weapons.

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14y ago

It is used in radioisotope electric generators, used in space shuttles that get too far from the sun to resive enough solar energy to run properly.

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Q: What is a common use for plutonium?
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Related questions

What is a common compound pf plutonium?

Plutonium dioxide (PuO2) is a common compound of plutonium that forms naturally as a dark brown or black powder.


What is the common compound in plutonium?

Examples: PuO2, plutonium nitrate, plutonium carbide, plutonium chloride, plutonium fluoride etc.


What are common compounds that contain plutonium?

Common compounds that contain plutonium include plutonium dioxide (PuO2) and plutonium chloride (PuCl3). These compounds are often used in nuclear reactors and weapons production.


What is plutoniums most common isotope?

Plutonium-239 is the most common isotope of plutonium. It is used in nuclear weapons and nuclear reactors due to its ability to undergo fission.


What are common compounds are formed by plutonium?

Some common compounds of plutonium include plutonium dioxide (PuO2), plutonium chloride (PuCl4), plutonium fluoride (PuF4), and plutonium nitrate (Pu(NO3)4). These compounds are often produced during the processing and storage of plutonium materials.


How common is plutonium?

Plutonium is relatively rare in nature and is typically produced artificially in nuclear reactors. It is a radioactive element and is mainly used in nuclear weapons and reactors. Due to its toxicity and potential for use in nuclear weapons, there are strict regulations and controls on the production and use of plutonium.


What does mercury the element and plutonium have in common?

Mercury and plutonium are chemical elements and metals.


What common compounds are found in plutonium?

Plutonium as a chemical element don't contain compounds. But plutonium, being reactive, can be combined with many elements: oxygen, hydrogen, halogens, nitrogen, carbon, sulfur, silicon, etc.


What is plutonium gender?

No gender for the name plutonium. All English nouns are of common gender.


What are some compounds that use plutonium?

Plutonium is typically used in nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons. Some common compounds that contain plutonium include plutonium oxide (PuO2) and plutonium chloride (PuCl3). These compounds are used in various nuclear processes for energy generation and military applications.


Is plutonium a common element?

Plutonium is not a common metal; it is an artificial chemical element, dangerous, expensive and is obtained only in some countries.


How can you use plutonium in a sentence?

There's no plutonium here. I haven't even seen any plutonium, recently.