Isotopes of sodium

Isotopes of sodium (11Na)
Main isotopes[1] Decay
abun­dance half-life (t1/2) mode pro­duct
22Na trace 2.6019 y β+ 22Ne
23Na 100% stable
24Na trace 14.956 h β 24Mg
Standard atomic weight Ar°(Na)

There are 20 known isotopes of sodium (11Na), ranging from 17
Na
to 39
Na
(except for 36Na and 38Na),[4] and five isomers. 23
Na
is the only stable (and the only primordial) isotope. It is considered a monoisotopic element and it has a standard atomic weight given by that isotope. Sodium has two radioactive cosmogenic isotopes (22
Na
, with a half-life of 2.6019 years; and 24
Na
, with a half-life of 14.9560(15) h). With the exception of those two isotopes, all other isotopes have half-lives under a minute, most under a second.

Acute neutron radiation exposure (e.g., from a nuclear criticality accident) converts some of the stable 23
Na
in human blood plasma to 24
Na
. The neutron radiation dosage to the victim can be assessed thus by prompt measurement of the radioisotope.

22
Na
is a positron-emitting isotope with a relatively long half-life, about 2.6 years. It is used to create test-objects and point-sources for positron emission tomography.

  1. ^ Kondev, F. G.; Wang, M.; Huang, W. J.; Naimi, S.; Audi, G. (2021). "The NUBASE2020 evaluation of nuclear properties" (PDF). Chinese Physics C. 45 (3): 030001. doi:10.1088/1674-1137/abddae.
  2. ^ "Standard Atomic Weights: Sodium". CIAAW. 2005.
  3. ^ Prohaska, Thomas; Irrgeher, Johanna; Benefield, Jacqueline; Böhlke, John K.; Chesson, Lesley A.; Coplen, Tyler B.; Ding, Tiping; Dunn, Philip J. H.; Gröning, Manfred; Holden, Norman E.; Meijer, Harro A. J. (2022-05-04). "Standard atomic weights of the elements 2021 (IUPAC Technical Report)". Pure and Applied Chemistry. doi:10.1515/pac-2019-0603. ISSN 1365-3075.
  4. ^ Ahn, D.S.; et al. (2022-11-14). "Discovery of 39Na". Physical Review Letters. 129 (21) 212502: 212502. Bibcode:2022PhRvL.129u2502A. doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.129.212502. PMID 36461972. S2CID 253591660.