tritium fuel

[SloGlo]

i jist got axed sum questions by a kid in da neighborhood.  he wanted an answear by tonite sew he kin right a class paper on it dis weak end.  i toll hymn i'd find out 'n let him know all da responses.

can tritium (h3) be used as a fuel, as hydrogen?

would it be more or less efficient?

what would be the end result, as waste product(s)?

[RDTroja]

i jist got axed sum questions by a kid in da neighborhood.  he wanted an answear by tonite sew he kin right a class paper on it dis weak end.  i toll hymn i'd find out 'n let him know all da responses.

can tritium (h3) be used as a fuel, as hydrogen?

would it be more or less efficient?

what would be the end result, as waste product(s)?

I am not a chemist or a fuel engineer, but...

Yes.

No difference.

Tritiated water H³₂O. The tritium would be unaffected as far as its radioactive properties... bad idea as a fuel and expensive too, I would think.

The chemical reaction of combining hydrogen and oxygen and forming water is dependent only upon the electrons, not the number of neutrons in the nucleus. Tritium does just as well as regular hydrogen.

(Edited for spelling)

[G-reg]

Chemical reactions (such as combustion) do not care about isotopic differences, not even a tiny little bit.  There is no way to sort, segregate, or differentiate isotopes of any element via chemical processes.  All isotopes of a given element have exactly the same chemical properties as the other isotopes of that element (at least up until the time they decay into a different element).

Hope that helps,
- Greg

[SloGlo]

rdtroja & g-reg.... tanks.  aisle pass dese along.  eye ain't shur ware his home work paper is going wit dis, butt wit bean able two source it two nukeworker, dere shud be 'n extra credit point or too, huh? 

mebbe dis'd bee a weigh to git ridda sum excess plant inventory.....

[MrHazmat]

Yea, but would not the water from the tail pipe be contaminating the road?? And how about following this vehicle down the road for a couple of hundred miles?

[RDTroja]

Yea, but would not the water from the tail pipe be contaminating the road?? And how about following this vehicle down the road for a couple of hundred miles?

Yes, it would...  but how much is another question. Maybe it would be below regulatory levels and therefore ok... dilution is the solution... nah. Still a bad idea.

[SloGlo]

two late for da issues of environmental impact of radiological consirn.  dat wuz suppost two be an sweared in da response two query nummer 3.

[RDTroja]

two late for da issues of environmental impact of radiological consirn.  dat wuz suppost two be an sweared in da response two query nummer 3.

Thought I covered that with:

The tritium would be unaffected as far as its radioactive properties... bad idea as a fuel and expensive too, I would think.

[SloGlo]

Thought I covered that with:

aye wuz meening dat dis stuff shooda, cooda, wooda bin cuvered in intitial responses.  butt, den agin, aye due knot know ware dis homework is going.  mebbe interesting.  mebbe aisle git calt inn two s'cool four a conferince? 

[B.PRESGROVE]

Having worked with Tritium I can say yes it would be alright as a fuel source, but Tritium seems to find away out of everything you stick it in.  Its chemical properties make it able to seep through any container, suit, or process.  Yah the stuff out the tail pipe may not be to much, but the car will be crapped up if it sits in the tank to long.  Just a two cents worth.