Calculate Isotope Abundance
What is Isotope Abundance?
Isotopes are variants of a chemical element that have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons. The abundance of an isotope refers to the percentage of atoms of that particular isotope found in a naturally occurring sample of the element.
The natural abundance of isotopes varies for different elements. For example, carbon has two stable isotopes: carbon-12 (98.93%) and carbon-13 (1.07%). These different abundances contribute to the average atomic mass of an element.
The average atomic mass of an element is calculated by multiplying the mass of each isotope by its fractional abundance and then summing these values:
Average Atomic Mass = Σ(Isotope Mass × Fractional Abundance)
Conversely, if you know the average atomic mass and the masses of individual isotopes, you can calculate the abundance percentages of those isotopes. This is particularly useful in analytical chemistry and isotope geochemistry.
Our calculator allows you to:
- Calculate average atomic mass from known isotope abundances
- Calculate isotope abundances from average atomic mass and isotope masses
- Work with common elements or custom isotope data
- Visualize isotope distribution in an easy-to-read format
This tool is valuable for chemistry students, researchers, and professionals working in fields such as nuclear chemistry, geochemistry, and environmental science.