Isotopes of iron

<p>Natural <a href="/facts/Iron/QK1JYy8E">iron</a> (26Fe) consists of four stable <a href="/facts/Isotope/KD9B1y6o">isotopes</a>: 5.845% 54Fe (possibly radioactive with <a href="/facts/Half-life/kGVH8BAB">half-life</a> >4.4×1020 years), 91.754% 56Fe, 2.119% 57Fe and 0.286% 58Fe. There are 28 known radioisotopes and 8 <a href="/facts/Nuclear_isomer/L8DHcqnk">nuclear isomers</a>, the most stable of which are 60Fe (half-life 2.6 million years) and 55Fe (half-life 2.7 years).
</p><p>Much of the past work on measuring the isotopic composition of iron has centered on determining 60Fe variations due to processes accompanying <a href="/facts/Nucleosynthesis/F9MIeADF">nucleosynthesis</a> (i.e., <a href="/facts/Meteorite/NsmHlBlX">meteorite</a> studies) and ore formation. In the last decade however, advances in <a href="/facts/Mass_spectrometry/RH5WBHJ2">mass spectrometry</a> technology have allowed the detection and quantification of minute, naturally occurring variations in the ratios of the <a href="/facts/Stable_isotope/vgcdxgjA">stable isotopes</a> of iron. Much of this work has been driven by the <a href="/facts/Earth_science/rQsXCSbM">Earth</a> and <a href="/facts/Planetary_science/ocX6rp0d">planetary science</a> communities, though applications to biological and industrial systems are beginning to emerge.
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Isotopes of iron open-in-new

Isotopes of iron