Europium-155
| Prop: Unit: |
t½ a |
Yield % |
Q * keV |
βγ * |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 155Eu | 4.76 | .0803 | 252 | βγ |
| 85Kr | 10.76 | .2180 | 687 | βγ |
| 113mCd | 14.1 | .0008 | 316 | β |
| 90Sr | 28.9 | 4.505 | 2826 | β |
| 137Cs | 30.23 | 6.337 | 1176 | βγ |
| 121mSn | 43.9 | .00005 | 390 | βγ |
| 151Sm | 90 | .5314 | 77 | β |
| Hover underlined: more info | ||||
Europium-155 is a fission product with a half-life of 4.76 years. It has a maximum decay energy of 252 KeV. In a thermal reactor (almost all current nuclear power plants), it has a low fission product yield, about half of one percent as much as the most abundant fission products.
155Eu's large neutron capture cross section (about 3900 barns for thermal neutrons, 16000 resonance integral) means that most of even the small amount produced is destroyed in the course of the nuclear fuel's burnup. Yield, decay energy, and halflife are all far less than 137Cs and 90Sr, so 155Eu is not a significant contributor to nuclear waste.
Some 155Eu is also produced by successive neutron capture on 153Eu (nonradioactive, 350 barns thermal, 1500 resonance integral, yield is about 5 times as great as 155Eu) and 154Eu (half-life 8.6 years, 1400 barns thermal, 1600 resonance integral, fission yield is extremely small because beta decay stops at 154Sm); however the differing cross sections mean that both 155Eu and 154Eu are destroyed faster than they are produced.
154Eu is a prolific emitter of gamma radiation.
| Isotope | Halflife | Relative yield | Thermal neutron | Resonance integral |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eu-153 | Stable | 5 | 350 | 1500 |
| Eu-154 | 8.6 years | Nearly 0 | 1500 | 1600 |
| Eu-155 | 4.76 years | 1 | 39000 | 16000 |
Read more about this topic: Isotopes Of Europium