Abstract
IN a previous communication1, it was pointed out that E. Bleuler's and M. Gabriel's2 estimates of the total half-life and K-capture to β-ray emission branching ratio were probably too high, since they led to an excessive quantity of argon-40 being produced by the surface materials of the earth during geological time. The more recent determinations of the radioactive decay constants of potassium-40 seem to have amply confirmed this view: in fact, if they are correct, the present difficulty is to explain the origin of argon-40 in the atmosphere.
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References
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POOLE, J., DELANEY, C. Origin of Atmospheric Argon and the Radioactive Decay Constants of Potassium-40. Nature 167, 680–681 (1951). https://doi.org/10.1038/167680b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/167680b0
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