# Maximum dating age equation

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Each radioactive isotope will have its own unique half-life that is independent of any of these factors.Figure $$\Page Index$$: For cobalt-60, which has a half-life of 5.27 years, 50% remains after 5.27 years (one half-life), 25% remains after 10.54 years (two half-lives), 12.5% remains after 15.81 years (three half-lives), and so on. The half-lives of many radioactive isotopes have been determined and they have been found to range from extremely long half-lives of 10 billion years to extremely short half-lives of fractions of a second.Example $$\Page Index$$ If there are 60 grams of $$\ce$$-240 present, how much $$\ce$$-240 will remain after 4 hours?($$\ce$$-240 has a half-life of 1 hour) Solution $\text = \dfrac (60 \, \text) \nonumber$ After 4 hours, only $$3.75 \: \text$$ of our original $$60 \: \text$$ sample would remain the radioactive isotope $$\ce$$-240.During natural radioactive decay, not all atoms of an element are instantaneously changed to atoms of another element.

Play a game that tests your ability to match the percentage of the dating element that remains to the age of the object.

Carbon dating has given archeologists a more accurate method by which they can determine the age of ancient artifacts.

Libby invented carbon dating for which he received the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1960.

$720\cancel\times \dfrac= 30\, days \nonumber$ $n=3 =\dfrac \nonumber$ $\text = \dfrac (8.0 \, ug) \nonumber$ After 720 hours, 1.0 ug of the material remains as $$\ce$$-225 .

For example, carbon-14 has a half-life of 5,730 years and is used to measure the age of organic material.