The half-lives for the radioactive decay of various elements are listed below.
Parent Isotope
Daughter Isotope
Half Life (years)
Carbon-14
Nitrogen-14
5730
Uranium-235
Lead-207
710 million
Potassium-40
Argon-40
1.25 billion
a) Suppose you discovered a meteorite that contains a small amount of potassium-40 and its decay product argon-40. You determine that 1/8 of the original potassium-40 remains; the other 7/8 has decayed into argon-40. How old is the meteorite?
b) A piece of cloth was painted with organic dye 34380 years ago. What percentage of the original carbon-14 in the organic dye remains after all this time?
c) The oldest minerals found on Earth are zircons. One isotope used to measure their age is uranium-235. A single crystal contained 20 nanograms of uranium-235 when it first formed. How much uranium-235 does the crystal still contain if it formed 2.84 billion years ago?