Replies

The comments in that thread are fascinating.

Re: [Vo]:Mass media exposure kills SPAWAR cold fusion research
Horace Heffner Sun, 18 Dec 2011 02:54:39 -0800

On Dec 17, 2011, at 9:55 PM, Aussie Guy E-Cat wrote:

Here is where Frank Gordon and crew are working now. They are ready to remediate nuclear waste with their foils and they too are working under the radar, given the maturity of their knowledge and trade craft. SPAWAR / DOD says they know how to burn nuclear waste, DOE says that's impossible therefore not real. To admit that nuclear waste can be remediated with co-dep foils is to admit that all their energy clients are wrong. http:// www.globalenergycorporation.net/

Here is some stunning stuff:

http://www.globalenergycorporation.net/Tech.aspx

"While there are numerous products possible, GEC is currently focusing on the GeNiE Hybrid Fusion, Fast-Fission Reactor that will use either natural uranium or existing hazardous waste as fuel."

This is an amazing claim. Frank Gordon is a reliable scientist. The technology is apparently still not developed, but I think this kind of claim would not be made lightly.

I have to wonder if the day has arrived or close to arriving that I need no longer concern myself with cold fusion and can go on to the other things in my queue. Perhaps they finally got around to testing tritium in their protocol, for reasons discussed on p. 29 of:

http://www.mtaonline.net/~hheffner/CFnuclearReactions.pdf

A DT reaction, even if by cold fusion, always produces a neutron. There is only one probably channel. For this reason I have suggested tritium doping of deuterium experiments is an important LENR diagnostic technique.

I note there is no mention of cold fusion. This leads me to believe it is more likely the neutron source may be a DT neutron tube.

For some background see:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neutron_generator

Here is some background on neutron tubes from a now defunct web site:

http://www.mfphysics.com/About%20NG.htm

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About MF Physics Neutron Generators

Neutron Sources

Neutrons may be produced using a number of techniques including isotopic
sources, small deuterium-tritium neutron generators, and large accelerators.

Isotopic neutron sources produce continuous fluxes of neutrons. The most
common isotopic source our neutrons is from spontaneous fission of
Californium-252 (252Cf). The average energy of neutrons from 252Cf is 2.3 MeV. The half life is 2.6 years. Neutrons may also be produced by mixing an isotope which emits a particle with beryllium-9. Neutrons are produced by
the (a, n) reaction with beryllium. Common (a,n) sources are:

239Pu with 9Be, 226Ra with 9Be, and 241Am with 9Be

Isotopic neutron sources have the advantage having a long useful life and
producing a relatively constant flux of neutrons. They may also be
relatively inexpensive for low flux (<108 neutrons per second) sources.
However, isotopic sources have several disadvantages. The neutron output can not be turned off, requiring that they be contained within bulky shielding
at all times. Isotopic neutron sources can not be pulsed and the energy
spectrum of the emitted neutrons is broad and peaks at energies below the
threshold for some important reactions.

Neutron Generators

Small neutron generators using the deuterium (2H) - tritium (3H) reaction
are the most common accelerator based (as opposed to isotopic) neutron
sources. Neutrons are produced by creating deuterium ions and accelerating these ions into a tritium or deuterium target. The D-D reaction is used only in special circumstances because the neutron yield from the D-T reaction is
~100 times higher.

D + T¨ n + 4He En = 14.2 MeV

D + D¨ n + 3He En = 2.5 MeV

Yield(D,T) ~ 100 x Yield(D,D)

Neutrons produced from the D-T reaction are emitted isotropically
(uniformly in all directions) from the target. Neutron emission from the D-D reaction is slightly peaked in the forward (along the axis of the ion beam)
direction. In both cases, the He nucleus (a particle) is emitted in the
exact opposite direction of the neutron.

Most small d-t accelerators are sealed tube neutron generators. The ion
source, ion optics and the accelerator target are enclosed in within a
vacuum tight enclosure. High voltage insulation between the ion optical
elements of the tube is provided by either glass or ceramic insulators.

The neutron tube is, in turn, enclosed in a metal housing, the accelerator head, which is filled with an dielectric media to insulate the high voltage elements of the tube from the laboratory surroundings. The accelerator and
ion source high voltages are provided by external power supplies. The
control console allows the operator to adjust the operating parameters of the neutron tube. The power supplies are normally located within 10-30 feet of the accelerator head. The Control Console may be located as far as 50-100
feet from the accelerator head.

The basic features of a sealed neutron tube are illustrated in the
schematic. This is typical of the neutron tubes used in the MF Physics
A-801, A-325, A-320 and A-210/211 neutron generators.

Ions are generated using a Penning ion source. The Penning source is a low gas pressure, cold cathode ion source which utilizes crossed electric and magnetic fields. The gas pressure in the source is regulated by heating or cooling the gas reservoir element. The ions source anode is at a positive potential, either dc or pulsed, with respect to the source cathode. The ion
source voltage is normally between 2 and 7 kilovolts.

A plasma is formed along the axis of the anode which traps electrons which, in turn, ionize gas in the source. The ions are extracted through the exit
cathode. Under normal operation, the ion species produced by the Penning
source are over 90% molecular ions.

Ions emerging from the exit cathode are accelerated through the potential
difference between the exit cathode and the accelerator electrode. The
schematic indicates that the exit cathode is at ground potential and the
target is at high (negative) potential. This is the case in many sealed tube
neutron generators. However, in cases when it is desired to deliver the
maximum flux to a sample, it is desirable to operate the neutron tube with the target grounded and the source floating at high (positive) potential.
The accelerator voltage is normally between 80 and 180 kilovolts.

The ions pass through the accelerating electrode and strike the target. When ions strike the target, 2 - 3 electrons per ion are produced by secondary
emission. In order to prevent these secondary electrons from being
accelerated back into the ion source, the accelerator electrode is biased negative with respect to the target. This voltage, called the suppressor voltage, must at least 500 volts and may be as high as a few kilovolts. Loss of suppressor voltage will result in damage, possibly catastrophic, to the
neutron tube.

Some neutron tubes incorporate an intermediate electrode, called the focus or extractor electrode, to control the size of the beam spot on the target.
Both the A-711 neutron generator and the A-910/920 neutron generators
incorporate sealed neutron tubes which have focus electrodes.

The target is a thin film of a metal such as titanium, scandium, or
zirconium which is deposited on a copper or molybdenum substrate. Titanium, scandium, and zirconium form stable chemical compounds called metal hydrides when combined with hydrogen or its isotopes. These metal hydrides are made up of two hydrogen (deuterium or tritium) atoms per metal atom and allow the target to have extremely high densities of hydrogen. This is important to maximize the neutron yield of the neutron tube. The gas reservoir element
also uses metal hydrides as the active material. All MF Physics neutron
tubes are designed such that the gas reservoir element and the target each
incorporate equal amounts of deuterium and tritium. In these mixed gas
tubes, both the ion beam and target contain 50% deuterium and 50% tritium.
This allows the tubes to have very stable neutron yields over their
operational life. The total tritium content of MF Physics neutron tubes
ranges from 2-5 Curies.

An alternative to the sealed tube neutron generator is the pumped, drift
tube accelerator. These differ from the sealed tube neutron generator in
that the accelerating structure is continuously pumped by a sputter ion
pump. Gas to be ionized is introduced directly into the device from an
external supply. Ions from the accelerating structure pass through the ion
pump, through an in-line valve and down a short tube to the target. The
target may be isolated from the rest of the accelerator by closing the in line valve. This allows easy replacement of the target. The advantage of a
drift tube accelerator is that they are very versatile in terms of the
isotopic species used in the ion beam and the target. The experimenter has easy access to the target area and the initial neutron yield may be quite
high. The disadvantages are the neutron yield decreases rapidly with
operation and the target life is quite short, as little as a few hours. When
used as a D-T accelerator, extreme caution must be used when changing
targets in order to avoid contamination of the laboratory with tritium. The MF Physics model A-1254 is an example of a pumped, drift tube accelerator.

Advantages of Neutron Generators

Neutron generators possess none of the disadvantages of isotopic neutron
sources. Sealed tube neutron generators can be turned off. They may be
operated either as continuous or pulsed neutron sources. The neutrons
produced are monoenergetic (2.5 MeV or 14 MeV). The 14 MeV neutrons are
sufficiently energetic to excite n,nâg reactions in nitrogen and oxygen
which are particularly important to many applications.

MF Physics, 5074 List Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80919

Voice: 719-598-9549 email: neutr...@mfphysics.com FAX: 719-598-2599

Best regards,

Horace Heffner
http://www.mtaonline.net/~hheffner/