Which change will always take place during the nuclear fission?
A. Nuclei will be produced with much larger mass numbers.
B. Several nuclei will combine into one nuclei.
C. The nucleus with the largest mass will split into two or more relatively large pieces.
D. A nucleus will take in energy in large amounts, increasing its mass.
C. The nucleus with the largest mass will split into two or more relatively large pieces.
C. The nucleus with the largest mass will split into two or more relatively large pieces.
The correct answer is C. During nuclear fission, the nucleus with the largest mass will split into two or more relatively large pieces. This process releases a large amount of energy.
To understand why option C is correct, let's first understand the process of nuclear fission. Nuclear fission is a nuclear reaction in which the nucleus of an atom is split into two or more smaller nuclei. This process occurs when a heavy nucleus, such as uranium-235 or plutonium-239, absorbs a neutron, becoming unstable and subsequently splitting into smaller fragments.
During this splitting, two or more relatively large pieces, along with additional free neutrons, are produced. These fragments are often referred to as fission products, and they have smaller mass numbers compared to the original nucleus. The released energy is in the form of kinetic energy of the fission products and the kinetic energy and thermal energy of the emitted neutrons.
To recap, during nuclear fission, the nucleus with the largest mass splits into two or more relatively large pieces, and this process releases a significant amount of energy. Therefore, option C is the correct choice.