What does the 218 in polonium 218 represent?
Understand the Problem
The question is asking about the significance of the number 218 in the context of the element polonium. This number represents the atomic mass of the isotope of polonium, indicating that it has a total of 218 nucleons (protons and neutrons) in its nucleus.
Answer
The mass number
The number 218 in polonium-218 represents the mass number, which is the total number of protons and neutrons in the atom's nucleus.
Answer for screen readers
The number 218 in polonium-218 represents the mass number, which is the total number of protons and neutrons in the atom's nucleus.
More Information
In polonium-218, the number 218 represents the sum of its 84 protons and 134 neutrons.
Tips
Don't confuse the mass number with the atomic number. The mass number represents the total protons and neutrons, while the atomic number represents only the protons.
Sources
- What does the 218 in polonium -218 represent? - Answers - answers.com
- Polonium-218 | Po | CID 6328554 - PubChem - pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
