Path: santra!tut!draken!kth!mcvax!uunet!husc6!mailrus!wasatch!ch-tkr
From: ch-tkr@wasatch.utah.edu (Timothy K Reynolds)
Newsgroups: sci.physics
Subject: German refutation of cold fusion (from alt.fusion)
Summary: They suggest 2D2 + O2 when electrode in air.
Keywords: chemical oxidataion
Message-ID: <1648@wasatch.utah.edu>
Date: 24 Apr 89 17:27:45 GMT
Organization: University of Utah CS Dept
Lines: 100

William Watson (watson@halley.UUCP) posted this on alt.fusion.  I thought
it appropriate to cross post to sci.physics.  

This is a copy of an article from the internal news system at Tandem.

Copied By: WATSON_WILLIAM @AUSTIN
   SENT: 89-04-21  07:06
   FROM: SCHWARTZ_GERHARD @FRANKFT
     TO: DL.ALL_TANDEM @FRANKFT
SUBJECT: 3:"Cold fusion" - just a flop ???

Hello world,

a lot of exitement had been caused by the Fleischmann/Pons experiments.
Here is a report by German scientists which raises substantial doubts.
If those findings prove to be correct, this may well mean the end of the
cold fusion dream for quite some time.

Sorry 'bout that,
                        Gerhard

------------------------ TEXT  ATTACHMENT ----------------------------
   SENT: 89-04-21  07:06
   FROM: SCHWARTZ_GERHARD @FRANKFT
The German scientists Kreysa, Marx and Plieth did experiments at the
institute for anorganic chemistry of the Berlin university to verify the
Fleischmann/Pons experiments at the University of Utah in Salt Lake
City. The German Society for Chemical Technology (Dechema) produced a
report, which states:


"Fleischmann and Pons did electrolyse heavy water (deuterium oxyde) using
Palladium electrodes and noticed the following effects.

Appearantly, neutrons were generated at the electrode as well as a possible
fusion product of deuterium, Tritium. The reaction between neutrons and the
water bath surrounding the electrolytic cell produced gamma rays. The
Palladium electrodes produced more heat than would be expected from the
electric energy that was applied to the cell. In one experiment, a palladium
cube of one cubic centimeter produced that much heat that it melted partly
and did distroy parts of the experimental setup in a blast.

However, the heat production of the supposed fusion of Deuterium (as calculated
from radiation measurements) was that low that it could explain just a small
fraction of the heat actually produced. The authors therefore postulated
another, yet unknown core reaction process.

The three German scientists were able to show with their experiment, that
all observations (in principle) were correct. However, by further verification
experiments they were able to further substanciate doubts whether a cold
fusion is required to explain the effects.

In the natural radiation that surrounds us, there are always some neutrons,
their number is subject to change substancially both with time and different
locations. Fleischmann and Pons did measure on their test location three
times the neutron flow than at another location within the same building.
However, a verification measurement at the test location was not done.

At about the same energy required to produce the gamma rays in the water bath,
there is the radiation of the Bismut isotope 214, which is a decay product
of Radium and can be found in almost every building. The measurement setup
used by Fleischmann and Pons was not accurate enough to differentiate that
isotope radiation from gamma rays.

The three German scientists used a more accurate measuring technique to
achieve this. They also found that the Tritium observed was in the heavy
water from the beginning and did accumulate during the electrolysis
at the electrodes.

The strong heat is caused by the fact that the Deuterium produced by the
electrolytic process is dissolved in the Palladium electrodes and
distributes within them. The Deuterium also gets into the electrode's
surface above the electrolytic fluid. There, it reacts with oxygen
by the catalytic action of the metal and produces great amounts of heat.

This effect is known since 1823 and was used in the so-called
"Doebereiner cigarette lighter".

At the experiment in Salt Lake City using the Palladium cube, appearantly
there was a high content of Deuterium in the cube which could not react
with Oxygen because the cube was completely submerged in the fluid.
Because the fluid level was reduced by the electrolytic process, at
a certain point the cube's upper surface got in contact with air, and
the resulting reaction between Deuterium and Oxygen did destroy the
cube in an explosion.

In their experiments, the German scientists used a Palladium sheet
loaded with Hydrogen. After removing it from the electrolytic cell,
it produced that much heat that it caused a burned spot on the table
surface. This can only be explained by the spontaneous catalytic
oxydation of the hydrogen dissolved in the Palladium electrode with
the oxygen in the air. Of course, this effect is not relevant for
producing energy because more electric energy had to be used in the
electrolytic process.

A simple technology to use fusion energy would indeed be very beneficial
for mankind. However, according to the results and conclusions by the
three German scientists, one has to conclude that the results produced
by Fleischmann and Pons up to now are not sufficient to prove that a
cold fusion actually did occur."