The half life of a radioactive isotope X is 50 years. It decays to another element Y which is stable. The two elements X and Y were found to be in the ratio of 1 : 15 in a sample of a given rock. The age of the rock was estimated to be
- 150 years
- 200 years
- 250 years
- 100 years
Answer
(2) 200 years
Solution
NX : NY = 1 : 15
Initial amount of X: N0 = NX + NY = 16 parts
NN0 = 116 = ( 12 )4
Number of half lives = 4
t = 4 50 = 200 years
Answer: (2)