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benzun_1999
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Dear reader,
My friend was telling about something called mass defect. what is it correctly?
-benzun
All For God
My friend was telling about something called mass defect. what is it correctly?
-benzun
All For God
Originally posted by benzun_1999
so does this break the law of conservation of mass?
Originally posted by AlanPartr
There is something about the mass defect that I cannot understand, if the consituant particles of the nucleus are indivisible how can they give up just some of their energy to bind, surely quarks have a constant mass (if at rest) and can therefore only be converted entirely to energy, which of course is not observed
Mass defect refers to the difference between the mass of an atom's nucleus and the sum of the masses of its individual protons and neutrons. This difference is caused by the conversion of mass into energy during nuclear reactions.
The formula for calculating mass defect is: mass defect = (Zmp + Nmn) - M, where Z is the number of protons, N is the number of neutrons, mp is the mass of a proton, mn is the mass of a neutron, and M is the actual mass of the nucleus.
Mass defect is caused by the conversion of some of the mass of the nucleus into energy during nuclear reactions. This is due to the strong nuclear force that holds the nucleus together. When this force is overcome during a reaction, some of the mass is converted into energy according to Einstein's famous equation, E=mc^2.
Nuclear binding energy is the energy required to break apart the nucleus of an atom. Mass defect is directly related to this energy, as the difference in mass between the individual particles and the nucleus is converted into energy when the nucleus is formed. This binding energy is what keeps the nucleus stable.
Mass defect plays a crucial role in nuclear reactions. The release of energy due to mass defect is what powers nuclear reactions and is used in nuclear power plants and nuclear weapons. It also helps scientists understand the stability of different elements and their isotopes.