Half-life of radioactive substance

Join the discussion
Ask a follow-up here, or get your own question answered by working scientists, mathematicians and engineers — people, not an autocomplete.
Real named experts · corrections over time · the nuance an AI answer skips
1 replies · 6K views
gmmstr827
Messages
82
Reaction score
1

Homework Statement



If 20% of a radioactive substance disappears in 70 days, what is its half-life?

Homework Equations



y = C*e^(k*t)
where t is time in days
k is the constant of proportionality?
y is the current amount of substance


The Attempt at a Solution



20% disappears, so 100% - 20% = 80% remaining = 0.80 after 70 days
.8*C = C*e^(70*k)
Solve for k
k = -3.188 * 10^-3

Plug k value back into equation to find t at the substance's half-life (.5)
.5*C = C*e^((-3.188 * 10^-3)*t)
Solve for t
t = 217.44

217.44 days is the substance's half-life.

Is that correct?
Thank you.
 
on Phys.org
It matches what I get.