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nuclear chemistry

nuclear chemistry

3.8
The study of radioactive materials and reactions in atomic nuclei
  • noun
  • /ˈnjuːklɪər ˈkɛmɪstri/
  • Specialized
translation icon : química nuclear
  • The study of nuclear chemistry involves understanding how radioactive substances behave during chemical reactions.

Examples

  • Understanding nuclear chemistry is essential for developing safe applications of radioactive materials.

  • To understand the impact of all this, you need info about nuclear chemistry, and I don't know anything about that at all.

    Blog text (20)
  • Second, if solar nuclear chemistry can influence terrestrial nuclear chemistry rates, could we observe the same effect near a commercial nuclear power plant?

    Blog text (5)
  • Second, if solar nuclear chemistry can influence terrestrial nuclear chemistry rates, could we observe the same effect near a commercial nuclear power plant?

    Blog text (5)
  • Researchers in nuclear chemistry analyze the decay processes of unstable elements.

Synonyms

radiochemistry
vsnuclear chemistry
  • Specialized
7.8

The study of radioactive substances and their chemical reactions

focuses on chemical processes that involve nuclear reactions

Surface Forms

Morphology

nuclear + chemistry

The meaning is directly compositional: 'nuclear' (relating to atomic nuclei or radioactivity) modifies 'chemistry' (the study of chemical substances and reactions), so a learner who knows both words will infer it as the subfield dealing with nuclear or radioactive chemical processes. This adjective–noun compound follows a common and cross-linguistically familiar pattern, making it immediately understandable to B1 learners.

Etymology

Nuclear chemistry The term nuclear chemistry comes from nuclear, meaning the tiny center of an atom, and chemistry, meaning the study of substances. It refers to the study of chemical changes that start in the atom's center, especially with 'radioactive substances', so the name explains the modern meaning.