Lanterna Rally

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Published: 1962

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The results of all exchange experiments suggest that tritium produced by a contained nuclear explosion wiil be mixed with environmental water. Tritium exchange in the reaction HTO + H/sub 2/ in equilibrium HT + H/sub 2/O was catalyzed at 600 deg C by a number of oxygenated salts that occur in salt formations. Calcium sulfate was the best catalyst, with values as high as 49 and 77% with pure CaSO/sub 4/ and Drierite, respectively. in deep bed tests. Even under diffusion-controlled conditions, where reactant gases were passed over fine powders of CaSO/sub 4/, exchanges were as high as 26% for residence times of 50 sec. Sodium chloride had no effect. At high temperatures in a plasma jet, with D/sub 2/ as a stand-in for T/sub 2/, exchange was very rapid. For 90 msec residence time and a D/sub 2//H/sub 2/O feed ratio of 1.3, 53% of the water hydrogen exchanged with deuterium. (auth).