Question

Differentiate between isotopes of hydrogen.(3mark)

Answer 1

I have provided the answer in 2 parts. For the 3 mark question you can use the first part. For the additional information you can read the part 2
Hydrogen only has 3 isotope forms:

• Regular hydrogen (H-1) Stable and most common form.
• Deuterium (H-2) Stable and common;y called “heavy hydrogen” because its mass is twice of hydrogen-1.
• Tritium (H-3) Radioactive.

You can also refer the following;

1H (atomic mass 1.007825032241(94) u) is the most common hydrogen isotope with an abundance of more than 99.98%. Because the nucleus of this isotope consists of only a single proton, it is given the formal name protium.The proton has never been observed to decay, and hydrogen-1 is therefore considered a stable isotope.

2H (atomic mass 2.01410177811(12) u), the other stable hydrogen isotope, is known as deuterium and contains one proton and one neutron in its nucleus. The nucleus of deuterium is called a deuteron. Deuterium comprises 0.0026 – 0.0184% (by population, not by mass) of hydrogen samples on Earth, with the lower number tending to be found in samples of hydrogen gas and the higher enrichment (0.015% or 150 ppm) typical of ocean water.

3H (atomic mass 3.01604928199(23) u) is known as tritium and contains one proton and two neutrons in its nucleus. It is radioactive, decaying into helium-3 through β− decay with a half-life of 12.32 years.[4] Trace amounts of tritium occur naturally because of the interaction of cosmic rays with atmospheric gases. Tritium has also been released during nuclear weapons tests. It is used in thermonuclear fusion weapons, as a tracer in isotope geochemistry, and specialized in self-powered lighting devices.
The most common method of producing tritium is by bombarding a natural isotope of lithium, lithium-6, with neutrons in a nuclear reactor.