BASIC EDUCATION DIVISION

Senior High South School

Origin of the Elements

1.1 Created by: Yvette M. Villarta

In this module, you will spend 90 minutes to:

a. explain the connection of cosmology to the formation of matter;
b. differentiate chemical equation and nuclear equation;
c. write the nuclear fusion reactions that take place to form new elements.

INTRODUCTION:

Everything around us is matter, which is composed of varying combinations of any of the 114 elements
identified to be present in the universe, including the Earth. These elements are later found to be composed of atoms
– the building blocks of matter. How these elements are formed and existed is explained by physicists, chemists, and
astronomers on the basis of cosmology and the nuclear reactions that occurred during the early existence of the universe.

Elements are known to exist along

with the birth of the universe.

How did everything form?

Cosmic Origin of Elements

The existence of all matter is believed to have started with the birth of the universe. The most widely accepted
explanation to the origin of the universe is Big Bang theory. The universe began in a packed state of hot and enormous
density and energy at a finite time in the past. It is constantly expanding and cooling, not just a static universe. There
are some observational evidences that support the Big Bang model. These are Hubble or cosmic expansion, Cosmic microwave
background (CMB), and Primordial or Big Bang nucleosynthesis (BBN). In 1917, Albert Einstein proposed a model of the
universe. He explained that the universe is spatially bound (finite) with unchanging volume (static isotropic) and
uniformity of observations at different locations in the universe (homogeneous). His model gave rise to various
cosmological model, one of which is Lemaitre. He opposed Einstein model and argued that his model is not physically
realistic since slight variations in homogeneity would result to a loss in equilibrium.

a. Hubble or Cosmic Expansion – By the early 1930s, American astronomer Edwin Hubble made a major
discovery at Mount Wilson Observatory in California, USA with the use of 100-inch Hooker Telescope. He
identified Cepheid (a class of variable stars pulsating periodically and which can be used as an indicator of
distance and velocity) in enormous spiral nebulae – now called galaxies – including the Andromeda nebula,
which led to the discovery of other galaxies far beyond the Milky Way galaxy. Hubble and his assistant, Milton
Humason, formulated Hubble’s Law which proved that the universe is expanding thereby suggesting that the
universe was once compact. He explained that many stars and galaxies are moving away relative to the Milky
Way galaxy at a rate proportional to distance. It shines with light shifted toward the red end of the visible
spectrum. This phenomenon, called the redshift, occurs because the light waves of cosmic bodies are stretched
into low-frequency red waves as they move away from an observer on Earth.

b. Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) – In the 1940s, theoretical physicist and cosmologist George Gamow,
together with Robert Herman Alpher, predicted that if the early stage of the universe was hot and dense, then an
afterglow of radiation must have filled up the universe brought about by the cooling process. The afterglow is
detected radiation also known as the cosmic microwave background (CMB). In 1964, two radio astronomers of Bell
Laboratories in New Jersey, USA – Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson – confirmed the presence of the CMB with
an average temperature of 2.7 K. The discovery is considered as the second most significant (after Hubble’s
law) observation ever made regarding the description of the universe.

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c. Primordial or Big Bang Nucleosynthesis (BBN) – Gamow, Herman, and Alpher believed that the high
temperature of the universe is an appropriate condition for nuclear processes to occur during the first few
minutes of the Big Bang. According to them, the process began with fusion of protons and neutrons to form
nuclei in a process known as nucleosynthesis. It refers to the process of producing the “light elements” shortly
after the Big Bang.

Chemical reaction is the change of a substance into a new one that has a different chemical
identity while Nuclear reaction is a process in which a nucleus either combines with another
nucleus (nuclear fusion) or splits into smaller nuclei (nuclear fission).

Introduction to Nuclear Reactions

Before delving to the details of element formation, it is essential to familiarize the symbols and parts in a
chemical or nuclear reactions.

Chemical Equation: Zn + HCl ---> ZnCl2 + H2

Element’s Name Element’s Symbol No. of Atoms

Reactants Products
Zinc Zn 1 1
Hydrogen H 1 2
Chlorine Cl 1 2

Reactants are substances that takes part in and undergoes change Zn + HCl ---> ZnCl2 + H2
during a reaction while products are substances that is formed as
the result of a chemical reaction Reactants ---> Products

14 4 17 1
Nuclear Equation: N + He O + H
7 2 8 1

𝐴
where A is the mass number and Z is the atomic number of the new nuclide, X.
𝑍

Many entities can be involved in nuclear reactions. The most common are protons, neutrons, alpha particles,
beta particles, positrons, and gamma rays. Protons and neutrons are the constituents of atomic nuclei, and have been
described previously. Alpha particles (are high-energy helium nuclei. Beta particles are high-energy electrons, and
gamma rays are photons of very high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Positrons are positively charged electrons
(“anti-electrons”). The subscripts and superscripts are necessary for balancing nuclear equations, but are usually optional
in other circumstances.

Source: https://openstax.org/books/chemistry-2e/pages/21-2-nuclear-equations#CNX_Chem_21_02_Nuclearrxs
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Nuclear reactions involve the emission of energetic particles of an atom, a phenomenon known as radioactivity.
The radioactive particles may be elements, electrons, protons, and neutrons, among others. Notice that each particle
involved in a reaction has a superscript and a subscript at the left-hand side of the symbol.

What are the other types of nuclear reactions?

Sample problem #1
James Chadwick discovered the neutron in 1932, as a previously unknown neutral
particle produced along with 12C by the nuclear reaction between 9Be and 4He.

9
Answer: Be + 4𝐻𝑒 ⟶ 12C + 1𝑛
4 2 6 0

Sample problem #2 Which among the particles will complete the nuclear reaction below?

226
Ra ⟶ 222Rn + _________
88 86

Solution:

1. Use the reaction to arithmetically solve the missing values for the subscript
(atomic number, Z) and the superscript (atomic mass, A).

226
Ra ⟶ 222Rn + _________
88 86

Z – 88 = 86 + __2___
A – 226 = 222 + __4___

2. From the particles, the one with Z = 2 and A = 4 is the alpha particle. Therefore,
the complete equation is

226
Ra ⟶ 222Rn + 4α
88 86 2

REFERENCES:

Contemporary Physics Education Project (CPEP). (2003 November). Chapter 10: Origin of the elements. Retrieved
September 16, 2015 from http://www2.lbl.gov/abc/wallchart/ teachersguide/pdf/Chap10.pdf

Santiago, K., Silverio, A, and Ramos, J. D. (2016). Exploring life through science: Physical Science. Phoenix Publishing
House, Inc., Quezon City. ISBN 978-971-06-3891-8.

Punzalan, J. & Monserrat, R. (2016). Science in Today’s World for Senior High School: Physical Science. SIBS Publishing
House, Inc., Quezon City.
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SELF-ASSESSMENT

Name: _______________________________________ Grade & Block: ______________ Date: ______________

Try this out!

Write the correct nuclear equation and show your solution (to be submitted on or before 5:00 PM of September 11,
2020).

The first nuclide to be prepared by artificial means was an isotope of oxygen, 17O. It was made by Ernest Rutherford in
1919 by bombarding nitrogen atoms with α particles.

Solution:

PERIODIC TABLE OF ELEMENTS