Answer
(a) $12.13~MeV$
(b) $15.66~MeV$
(c) Neutron
Work Step by Step
(a) We know that
$\Delta m=16.007934u-15.994915u=0.013019u$
Now the required energy can be determined as
$E=|\Delta m|c^2$
We plug in the known values to obtain:
$E=(0.013019u)|\frac{931.494\frac{MeV}{c^2}}{1u}|c^2$
$\implies E=(0.013019)(931.494MeV)=12.13MeV$
(b) We know that
$\Delta m=m_f-m_i$
$\Delta m=16.01173u-15.994915u=0.016815u$
Now, $E=|\Delta m|c^2$
$\implies E=(0.016815u)|\frac{931.494\frac{MeV}{c^2}}{1u}|c^2$
$\implies E=15.66MeV$
(c) We can see from the results of part(a) and part(b) that the energy required to remove a neutron from a nucleus is greater than that of proton. The reason behind this is that the neutron is more strongly bound to the nucleus than a proton. Thus, we conclude that neutron removal needs more energy.
