The Origins of The Elements From The Basis of Chemical Reactions In Massive Stars In Deep Space

All of the elements on the Periodic Table have some origin. From the smallest and most basic of elements to the biggest ones, that were created naturally, they all seem to have a similar origin. The most basic elements, hydrogen and helium, have supposedly arisen from the Big Bang. Primarily hydrogen was brought about by the Big Bang initially. Supposedly there is “enough cool, neutral gas to form all the starts visible today” and the “decrease of gas content… reflects the conversion of gas into stars” (Pei et al., 1999). After the other remnants in the vastness of space would condense, which included mostly gases, and eventually heat up, the masses would eventually form stars. In them, “the first thermonuclear reactions to take place are those that convert deuterium, lithium, beryllium, and boron into helium” (Cameron, 1957).

The nuclear reaction goes on in even our sun, where hydrogen is used in a nuclear reaction to create helium, and nuclear reactions such as these are continuous throughout the universe, with smaller elements becoming the fuel for bigger elements through these nuclear reactions. “In this sequence an intermediate-mass star evolves from an oxygen-rich to a carbon-rich (C) star. This evolution is explained as the result of a series of nucleosynthetic and mixing event, which alter the C/O ratio from the values typical of the first giant branch stars to the enhancements found in C stars” (Abia & Wallerstein, 1997). Essentially, bigger elements are created by the fusion reactions of smaller elements and the conditions that allow for these reactions happen within stars.

While stars create bigger and bigger elements, they eventually run out of ‘fuel’ to allow for the reactions and eventually explode, scattering their vast atomic contents across the universe. Stars are able to continue this process for only so long before exploding and so the question of even bigger elements comes into mind. Humanity hasn’t found certain elements yet as they have been too big, but some have been created here on the Earth, “man has been able to produce artificially the neutron, technetium, promethium, and ten transuranic elements” (Burbidge et al., 1957). The creation of these elements has posed much danger as such extreme conditions are required to make them. With something going wrong, “there is no question that this type of action would serve to contaminate a considerable area to a dangerous degree” (Hamilton, 1949). Consequently there haven’t been too many man-made elements as it is dangerous, but more possibilities are being discovered.

Figure 1. – Mean Metallicity of Interstellar gas in galaxies in units of the solar value and comoving density of heavy elements in galaxies. (Pei, et al., 1999)

Works Cited

Abia, C. “Heavy-element Abundances in Seven SC Stars and Several Related Stars.”          Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 293.1 (1998): 89-106.

Burbidge, E. Margaret, G. Burbidge R., William Fowler A., and F. Hoyle. “Synthesis of    The Elements In Stars.” Reviews of Modern Physics 29.4 (1957): 548-51.

Cameron, A. G. W. “NUCLEAR REACTIONS IN STARS AND NUCLEOGENESIS.”   Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific 69.408 (1957): 201-22.

Hamilton, Joseph G. “The Metabolism of the Radioactive Elements Created by Nuclear    Fission — NEJM.” The New England Journal of Medicine 22nd ser. 240 (1949):       n. pag.             The New England Journal of Medicine.

Pei, Yichuan C., S. Fall Michael, and Michael Hauser G. “Cosmic Histories of Stars, Gas,Heavy Elements, and Dust in Galaxies.” The Astrophysical Journal 522.2 (1999):       n. pag. IOPSciecnce.