Isotope fractionation become enriched in the liquid phase while the lighter isotopes (O and H) tend toward the vapor phase. Isotope fractionation Isotope fractionation describes processes that affect the relative abundance of isotopes, often used in isotope geochemistry. Normally, the focus is on stable isotopes of the same element. Isotopic fractionation in the natural environment can be measured by isotope analysis, using isotope-ratio mass spectrometry, to separate different element isotopes on the basis of their mass-to-charge ratio, an important tool to understand natural systems. For example, in biochemistry processes cause a fluctuation in the amount of isotopes of carbon ratios incorporated into
Isotopes of americium Isotopes of americium Americium (Am) is an artificial element, and thus a standard atomic weight cannot be given. Like all artificial elements, it has no known stable isotopes. The first isotope to be synthesized was Am in 1944. The artificial element decays into alpha particles. Americium has an atomic number of 95 (the number of protons in the nucleus of the americium atom). Eighteen radioisotopes of americium from Am to Am (with the exception of Am) have been characterized, with the most stable being Am with a half-life of 7,370 years, and Am with a half-life of 432.2 years. All