The binding energy per nucleon of Li-7 and He-4 are 5.60 MeV and 7.06 MeV respectively. For the reaction Li-7 + H-1 → He-4 + He-4 + Q, find Q.
Options

Question

The binding energy per nucleon of Li-7 and He-4 are 5.60 MeV and 7.06 MeV respectively. For the reaction Li-7 + H-1 → He-4 + He-4 + Q, find Q.

G1 Physics · Accepted Answer

Binding energy of reactants = 7 × 5.60 = 39.20 MeV (hydrogen nucleus has no binding energy). Binding energy of products = 2 × (4 × 7.06) = 56.48 MeV. Q = BE_products − BE_reactants = 56.48 − 39.20 = 17.28 MeV ≈ 17.3 MeV. Final answer: Option D.