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Radiothorium

Main isotopes of thorium
Iso­tope Decay
abun­dance half-life (t1/2) mode pro­duct
227Th trace 18.68 d α 223Ra
228Th trace 1.9116 y α 224Ra
229Th trace 7917 y α 225Ra
230Th 0.02% 75400 y α 226Ra
231Th trace 25.5 h β 231Pa
232Th 99.98% 1.405×1010 y α 228Ra
234Th trace 24.1 d β 234Pa
Standard atomic weight (Ar, standard)
  • 232.0377(4)

Although thorium (90Th) has 6 naturally occurring isotopes, none of these isotopes are stable; however, one isotope, 232Th, is relatively stable, with a half-life of 1.405×1010 years, considerably longer than the age of the Earth, and even slightly longer than the generally accepted age of the universe. This isotope makes up nearly all natural thorium. As such, thorium is considered to be mononuclidic. However, in 2013 IUPAC reclassified thorium as binuclidic, due to large amounts in 230Th in deep seawater. Thorium has a characteristic terrestrial isotopic composition and thus a standard atomic weight can be given.

Thirty radioisotopes have been characterized, with the most stable (after 232Th) being 230Th with a half-life of 75,380 years, 229Th with a half-life of 7,340 years, and 228Th with a half-life of 1.92 years. All of the remaining radioactive isotopes have half-lives that are less than thirty days and the majority of these have half-lives that are less than ten minutes. One isotope, 229Th, has a nuclear isomer (or metastable state) with a remarkably low excitation energy, recently measured to be 7.6 ± 0.5 eV.

The known isotopes of thorium range in mass number from 209 to 238.

No fission products
have a half-life
in the range of
100–210 k years ...

... nor beyond 15.7 M years

Legend for superscript symbols
₡  has thermal neutron capture cross section in the range of 8–50 barns
ƒ  fissile
metastable isomer
№  naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM)
þ  neutron poison (thermal neutron capture cross section greater than 3k barns)
†  range 4–97 y: Medium-lived fission product
‡  over 200,000 y: Long-lived fission product


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