Suppose a laboratory has a 30 g sample of polonium-210. The half-life of polonium-210 is about 138 days How many half-lives of polonium-210 occur in 1104 days? How much polonium is in the sample 1104 days later?
To find the number of half-lives that occur in 1104 days, we divide 1104 by 138: 1104 / 138 = <<1104/138=8>>8
So, 8 half-lives of polonium-210 occur in 1104 days.
To find the amount of polonium in the sample 1104 days later, we divide the original amount by 2 raised to the power of the number of half-lives: 30 / 2^8 = 30 / 256 = <<30/256=0.1171875>>0.1171875 g
Therefore, the sample has approximately 0.117 g of polonium 1104 days later.