Isotope fractionation 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 a biological being. The difference between the true amount of carbon and the amount in the plant is
Isotopes of rutherfordium Isotopes of rutherfordium Rutherfordium (Rf) is a synthetic element, and thus a standard atomic weight cannot be given. Like all synthetic elements, it has no stable isotopes. The first isotope to be synthesized was either Rf in 1966 or Rf in 1969. There are 16 known radioisotopes from Rf to Rf (3 of which, Rf, Rf, and Rf are unconfirmed) and 4 isomers. The longest-lived isotope is Rf with an estimated half-life of 5 hours. The longest directly measured half-life is Rf at 11 minutes, and the longest-lived isomer is Rf with a half-life of 81 seconds. Super-heavy elements such