High School

The energy released from the fission reaction of 1.0 kg of uranium-235, which is the critical mass of uranium-235, can be calculated using:

A. [tex]E=mc^2[/tex]
B. Newton's Law of Gravitation
C. Boyle's Law
D. Ohm's Law

Answer :

Final answer:

The energy released from fission of 1.0 kg of uranium-235 is calculated using Einstein's formula E=mc². The mass lost during fission is converted to a large amount of energy, demonstrating how nuclear fission is a highly efficient energy source.

Explanation:

The energy released from the fission reaction of 1.0 kg of uranium-235 can be calculated using the formula E=mc², where E is energy, m is mass, and c is the speed of light in a vacuum. When U-235 undergoes fission, a small amount of mass is converted into a substantial amount of energy due to the relationship between mass and energy as stated by Einstein's theory. In fact, the fission of 1 kg of uranium-235 produces about 2.5 million times as much energy as burning 1 kg of coal. Fission reactions, like those involving uranium-235, demonstrate the remarkable efficiency of nuclear power in energy production.

A practical example of calculating the energy released: If one mole of U-235 undergoes fission, the resulting products weigh about 0.2 grams less than the reactants. This 'lost' mass is converted into approximately 1.8 × 10¹⁰ kJ of energy per mole of U-235. For 1.0 kg of U-235, this translates to a huge quantity of energy being released due to the fission process, as calculated by E=mc².