Title: Plutonium | Encyclopedia.com
Headings: Plutonium (revised)
Plutonium (revised)
PLUTONIUM (REVISED)
Overview
SYMBOL
Pu
ATOMIC NUMBER
94
ATOMIC MASS
244.0642
Discovery and naming
Physical properties
Chemical properties
Occurrence in nature
Isotopes
Extraction
Uses
Using fuel to make fuel
Compounds
Health effects
Plutonium
Plutonium
Bibliography
plutonium
Plutonium
Plutonium
plutonium

Content: This property makes plutonium a good choice for certain thermoelectric generator applications. A thermoelectric generator is a device that converts heat into electricity. Plutonium generators are not practical on a large scale basis. But they are very desirable for special conditions. For example, they have been used to provide electrical power on space probes and space vehicles. They have also been used in artificial pacemakers for people with heart conditions. The isotope most commonly used for this application is plutonium-238 because the radiation it gives off does not pose a threat to people's health. Plutonium is also used as a fuel in nuclear power plants and in making nuclear weapons ("atomic bombs"). The isotope used for this purpose is plutonium-239. It is used because it will undergo nuclear fission.