Quantum tunnel into becoming solid iron

[Stephanus]

Dear PF Forum,
I have no background in physics
In http://math.ucr.edu/home/baez/end.html

Similarly, if the black dwarfs and planets and the like don't evaporate and their protons don't decay, they may quantum-tunnel into becoming solid iron - as I already mentioned, this takes about 10¹⁵⁰⁰ years. And then, if this iron doesn't evaporate and nothing else happens, these balls of iron will eventually quantum-tunnel into becoming black holes, which then Hawking-radiate away. This would take about 10^{100000000000000000000000000} years - that's 26 zeros.

1. If an Earth size object is left alone (assuming the Sun won't swallow it 2 billions year later). In 10¹⁵⁰⁰all of it atoms, oxygen (majority abundant in earth, right), silicon, nitrogen (abundant in atmosphere, right), in short every atom even the heavier ones, uranium, radium, etc... they will become iron?
2. And this iron ball, Earth mass, barely chandrasekar (did I type the name correctly) mass will become black hole?
3. If number 2 is true, how long will it take for this iron ball to become black hole.
4. And black hole will evaporate through Hawking Radiation (to photon?). Is this true that an Earth size black hole to evaporate completely will takes 2^10^26 years?
5. And finally in simple answer, what is quantum tunnel?

 

[mfb]

1. If an Earth size object is left alone (assuming the Sun won't swallow it 2 billions year later). In 10¹⁵⁰⁰all of it atoms, oxygen (majority abundant in earth, right), silicon, nitrogen (abundant in atmosphere, right), in short every atom even the heavier ones, uranium, radium, etc... they will become iron?

In the absence of other effects, yes. There are good arguments for protons (and neutrons) to decay earlier, within something like 10⁴⁵ years (see this reference for example). Even if that estimate is many orders of magnitude off it would still mean matter decays much faster than the timescale of those fusion processes.

2. And this iron ball, Earth mass, barely chandrasekar (did I type the name correctly) mass will become black hole?

No. It would become a ball of iron.

4. And black hole will evaporate through Hawking Radiation (to photon?). Is this true that an Earth size black hole to evaporate completely will takes 2^10^26 years?

Much shorter.

5. And finally in simple answer, what is quantum tunnel?

Wikipedia has an article

 

[Stephanus]

2. And this iron ball, Earth mass, barely chandrasekar (did I type the name correctly) mass will become black hole?

No. It would become a ball of iron.

But,

http://math.ucr.edu/home/baez/end.html
And then, if this iron doesn't evaporate and nothing else happens, these balls of iron will eventually quantum-tunnel into becoming black holes, which then Hawking-radiate away.

And in the end, what? What about TIME?
Supposed the observable universe become a single black hole and it evaporates away then...?
If the universe reaches maximum entropy nothing changes, the universe doesn't have energy, matter, motion consist only space (or spacetime?), does time stop?
In SR, we often debate about this 'time' thing.
Time dilate, fasten, anything. No single device can measure time.
Grand father clock depends on gravity, wall clock depends on the power of the lithium battery, caesium atomic clock depends on... how fast the thing travels to a rest observer.
But that's all ridiculous, 1 second is 1 second. In one inertial frame, 1 second is 1 second, whether you have atomic clock or not.

So in the end..
1. Does time stop?
2. [Edit] Is this question scientifically?
3. [Edit] Is this question philosophically?
4. Does the universe still has inertial frame if there's nothing in it. (I don't mean the preffered inertial frame)

Thanks for the answer.

 

[mfb]

And then, if this iron doesn't evaporate and nothing else happens, these balls of iron will eventually quantum-tunnel into becoming black holes, which then Hawking-radiate away.

That is the proton decay mechanism I mentioned. It will happen long before larger structures would do that tunneling, if it can happen at all (very likely).

And in the end, what? What about TIME?

Time won't care. The universe will become a very boring place - eventually all you have are a few isolated particles without any interactions. There is nothing left that could measure time or display a result - so what?

 

[Stephanus]

That is the proton decay mechanism I mentioned. It will happen long before larger structures would do that tunneling, if it can happen at all (very likely).

Hmmh...

Time won't care. The universe will become a very boring place - eventually all you have are a few isolated particles without any interactions. There is nothing left that could measure time or display a result - so what?

Make sense.

But that's all will take place some 10¹⁵⁰⁰ years. And we don't even think about the next 50 years when the oil will run out. Fusion power is still the energy of the "future". And It always be. In the future it's still the energy of the "future".
Actually I just wanted to know that "time" is philosophically or scientifically. But that's too deep question and out of topic.
I have satisfied with your answer. Everything will turn to iron and eventually black hole.

 

[mfb]

Everything will turn to iron

Probably not, because it decays long before that happens.

 

[Stephanus]

Probably not, because it decays long before that happens.

Do you mean proton decay?

 

[mfb]

Right.

 

[Drakkith]

4. Does the universe still has inertial frame if there's nothing in it.

There will never be a time when the universe is filled with nothing. All these decay and evaporation processes leave behind radiation and matter, which are still moving about. The only thing that changes is that the density and temperature will become lower and lower over time.

 

[Stephanus]

What's the matter with the matter? Will they be forever, or disappear because of proton decay? 10¹⁵⁰⁰ years if I'm not mistaken?

 

[mfb]

10⁴⁵ years is a better estimate for the proton decay. Actually, it is more like an upper limit - it could be lower, but higher is unlikely.
All atoms will decay, so "matter" in the conventional way won't exist any more. Only photons, electrons, positrons and neutrinos, together with extremely weak gravitational waves, all with a very low density.