Do F-Block Elements Influence the Efficiency of Nuclear Fuels?

[spideyinspace]

uranium is f-block element..is there any relation between f-block elements and nuclear fuel...what i mean is ,i think f-block elements have more probablity of becoming nuclear fuel..is this correct?..

 

[malawi_glenn]

f-block means that the highest occupied electron levels in atom ground state is in f-orbitals.

There is no correlation. You have to go to nuclear level and treating isoptoes instead...

I mean, WHY should electron configuration have anything to do with probablity of beeing fissioned? You don't even have a clue right?

There is a huge difference between fission cross-section between U-235 and U-238 for example.

 

[Astronuc]

The lanthanides fill the 4-f levels (and some make good neutron absorbers), while the actinides fill the 5-f levels.

Isotopes such as U-233, U-235, Pu-239 and Pu-241 are readily fissionable by thermal (low energy) neutrons. Isotopes like Th-232, U-238 can fission by fast (high energy) neutrons.

The electron configuration depends on the Z of the atom and the physics of the electron interaction with the coulomb field. Nuclear properties are independent of the electron configuration, but do depend on the nuclear structure which is related to the number of protons (Z) and neutrons in the nucleus.