The specific 14C activity of a sample of charcoal is determi

The specific 14C activity of a sample of charcoal is determined to be 12.47 dpm g-1of carbon. What is the age of the sample if the initial activity of 14C in this sample was 13.56 dpm g-1of carbon? What would be the error if the intial activity were 15.30 dpm g-1of carbon?

Solution

Activity is directly proportional to the no o f atoms present in the sample.then we have: N(t)= N0exp(-lambda*t) where t is the life of the sample.half life of C-14 is 5730years. so the age of the sample from the formula is:692.732years.

for 15.3dpm we have the age:1690.75years