Candyium Lab

Name_______________

Radioactivity and Half-life

Date___________B____

Objective: Model and simulate radioactive decay using the element Candyium
Procedure: Peanut M&Ms stable. Regular M&Ms are an unstable radioactive isotope of
Candyium.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Record the total # of radioactive Candyium (regular) atoms in the bag at an elapsed time of 0 sec.
Put all the Candyium atoms back in the bag, seal it, and gently shake for _____ seconds
Gently pour out the candy onto your desk
Remove the radioactive atoms with the print side _______ - these M&M have "____________"
Count # of the pieces with the print side ____. Record this as the # of Undecayed Atoms left
Return the remaining Undecayed pieces that were print side UP to the bag.
Repeat steps 2-6 until all of the atoms have decayed.

Data Table:
Time

# of Undecayed
Atoms Left

(sec)

Group
Data

Class
Average

Data Analysis Notes

Time
Interval
(sec)

10

0 10

20

10 20

30

20 30

40

30 40

50

40 50

60

50 60

70

60 70

80

70 80

90

80 90

% decayed
from previous
total # of atoms

The data in this lab follows a mathematical function called exponential decay. It is not linear or
parabolic. Radioactive decay is a spontaneous and unpredictable process. However, the rate of
decay is predictable and depends only on how many atoms you have at that particular moment in
time. Many natural processes in science follow this kind of relationship including some chemical
reactions, how electric potential is discharged, the temperature difference between two objects
cooling down together, and how toxins are cleared from the body. You will study the exact
mathematics of exponential functions in Algebra II and certainly encounter them in college science.

Candyium Lab

Name_______________

Radioactivity and Half-life

Date___________B____

Data Analysis: (show work on graph, you do not have to include this in the lab report write-up)
1. Interpolate (mark with a ) how many undecayed atoms would be left after 35 seconds? _____
2. Interpolate (mark with a ) how many sec it would take for 18 undecayed atom to remain? ____
3. Interpolate (mark with a ) how many sec it would take for 25% of the sample to decay? _____
Results: You must use data (#s) in your answer.
1. Report the class average results.
2. Analyze your results by describing trends in the data.
3. Is the rate of decay over time increasing, constant, or decreasing?
4. Which time interval showed the biggest change in the # or atoms? Why?
5. Report the equation of the best fit-curve. What kind of function is this? How do you know it is
not linear? Use the R2 value to discuss the validity of your equation.
Discussion Questions:
1. What makes an element radioactive? What happens as a radioactive element decays?
2. Which is a more stable, Candyium or Carbon-14 (t = 5730 years)? Explain how you know.
3. In what ways was the Candyium lab data an accurate model for radioactive decay and isotopes?
What were the limitations of using Candyium to model radioactive decay and represent an isotope?
4. Describe the real-life use of at least 2 radioactive isotopes. How is t related to real-life application?
Post-Lab Calculations: Show all work and calculations for credit to the questions below.
1. Os-182 has a half-life of 21.5 hours. If you started with a 20.0 g sample, how much would be still
be undecayed after exactly 64.5 hours? What percentage would be undecayed?
2. Radon-222 has a half-life of 4 days. How long until 75% of the original sample has decayed?
3. After 40 days, 18 g of an original 72 g sample remains. What is the half-life of the isotope?
Candyium Lab Rubric
Data & Analysis: Collects all data and interpolates
Results: reports data
function

# undecayed

% decayed

Discussion: #1 Radioactivity #2 Stability & t

Uses & t
Calculations: #1 Mass and % undecayed
Calculate t
Comments:

Score
#1

#2

rate

#3

______ / 25

interval

______ / 30

#3 Modeling #4 Real-life

#2 % decayed

#3

______ / 30
______ / 15
______ / 100