Discover

'U-234' is one of the isotopes of uranium. In natural uranium, ²³⁴U occurs as the decay product of ²³⁸U, but makes up only 0.0055% of the uranium because its halflife of 246,000 years is only about 1/18,000 as long as the halflife of ²³⁸U.
Extraction of ²³⁴U from natural uranium is not feasible. Pure U-234 can be extracted (by ion exchange) from pure plutonium-238 which has been aged to allow some of it to decay to ²³⁴U.
Enriched uranium contains more U-234 than natural uranium, though this does not bring any benefits. Similarly, depleted uranium contains almost no U-234, which contributes to its low radioacivity when compared to natural uranium.

Contents

See also

See also

★ Uranium-uranium dating