General Chemistry: Principles and Modern Applications (10th Edition)

Published by Pearson Prentice Hal
ISBN 10: 0132064529
ISBN 13: 978-0-13206-452-1

Chapter 2 - Atoms and the Atomic Theory - Example 2-5 - Understanding the Meaning of a Weighted-Average Atomic Mass - Page 49: Practice Example A

Answer

Boron-11

Work Step by Step

From the Periodic table the mass of Boron (B) is $10.811 u$. Based on the question: Boron-10 $= 10.0129370 u$ Boron-11 $= 11.0093054 u $ Through observing the masses given, $11.0093054$ is closer to $10.811$ than $10.0129370$ , therefore, boron-11 is the more abundant isotope. If you cannot tell which one is closer just by looking at the numbers you can subtract: For Boron-10 : ( $10.811 - 10.0129370 = 0.798063$ ) For Boron- 11 : ( $ 11.0093054 - 10.811 = 0.1983054$ ) The difference in the average atomic mass of boron and the mass of the Boron-11 isotope is smaller than the the difference in the average atomic mass of boron and the mass of the Boron-10 isotope. This suggests that the mass of the boron-11 isotope is closer to the average atomic mass of all the boron isotopes and thus is the more abundant of the two.
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