TRITIUM

Chemical Properties

Half-life 12.5 years, radiation β, radiotoxic material.

Uses

Bombarding particle in cyclotrons, activator in self-luminous phosphors, in cold cathode tubes, tracer in biochemical research and various special problems in chemical analysis, luminous instrument dials, thermonuclear power research.

Definition

T. Radioactive isotope of hydrogen, mass number 3, isotopic weight 3.017 (two neutrons and one proton in the nucleus).

Definition

tritium: Symbol T. An isotope of hydrogenwith mass number 3; i.e. thenucleus contains 2 neutrons and 1proton. It is radioactive (half-life 12.3years), undergoing beta decay tohelium–3. Tritium is used in labelling.

Definition

A radioactive isotope of hydrogen of mass number 3. The nucleus contains 1 proton and 2 neutrons. Tritium decays with emission of low-energy beta radiation to give ^3He. The half-life is 12.3 years. It is useful as a tracer in studies of chemical reactions. Compounds in which ^3H atoms replace the usual ¹H atoms are said to be tritiated. A positive tritium ion, T⁺, is a triton.

Agricultural Uses

Tritium is one of the three isotopes of hydrogen, and is radioactive.

Raw materials

Preparation Products