Is total electrical charge conserved in alpha decay?
1. Total charge is conserved, because the alpha particle has a charge of +2, resulting in the atom being left with a charge of -2. However, the atom is very quickly stripped of the two excess electrons. 2. Alpha decay results in the loss of two protons, and thus a decrease of 2 in the atomic number. Uranium has an atomic number of 92 and thorium has an atomic number of 90, a reduction of 2, so thorium is the daughter particle of alpha decay in uranium. 3. A helium nucleus has a charge of +2 because it contains two protons (charge +1 each) and two neutrons (electrically neutral).
