--%>

Why is heavy water employed as a moderator

Describe why is heavy water employed as a moderator? Illustrate.

E

Expert

Verified

Heavy water is highly enriched in the hydrogen isotope deuterium. We can evaluate the neutron interactions with billiard ball collision, where the neutron collides with nucleus of other atoms and lose energy. When the colliding nucleus size is small such as hydrogen nucleus it will lose the maximum energy. When nucleus is heavy, then the neutron hits the nucleus just alters its direction however not that much change in the energy of neutron. Therefore we use heavy water as moderator to slow down the neutrons.

   Related Questions in Physics

  • Q : Free fall acceleration What do you mean

    What do you mean by the term free fall acceleration? State its significance in brief?

  • Q : What is Hubble constant Hubble constant

    Hubble constant: H0 (E.P. Hubble; 1925): The constant that determines the relationship among the distance to a galaxy and its velocity of recession due to the growth of the Universe. As the Universe is self-gravitating, it is not trut

  • Q : Collision & Transition State Theory

    Assuming ideal gas: a)  Calculate the average velocity of a nitrogen molecule at 298K and compare to the velocity of a helium molecule at the same conditions. b)      Calculate the temperature wh

  • Q : Calculating current in magnetically

    For the magnetically coupled circuit in Figure a, calculate I1 and I2. If the dotted terminals in are changed so that the circuit now becomes that in Figure b, re-calculate I1 and I2.

  • Q : Define Planck equation Planck equation:

    Planck equation: The quantum mechanical equation associating to the energy of a photon E to its frequency nu: E = h nu.

  • Q : Nuclear Physics Homework Help NUCLEAR

    NUCLEAR PHYSICS (PHY555) HOMEWORK #1 1. Calculate the luminosity for a beam of protons of 1 µA colliding with a stationary liquid hydrogen target 30 cm long. Compare this to a typical colliding beam luminosity of ∼1034 cm-2

  • Q : Explain Boyle's law Boyle's law (R.

    Boyle's law (R. Boyle; 1662); Mariotte's law (E. Mariotte; 1676) - The product result of the volume and pressure of an ideal gas at constant (steady) temperature is constant.

  • Q : Explain Thomson experiment or Kelvin

    Thomson experiment: Kelvin effect (Sir W. Thomson [later Lord Kelvin]): Whenever an electric current flows via a conductor whose ends are maintained at various temperatures, heat is discharged at a rate just about proportional to the

  • Q : Define Hoop conjecture Hoop conjecture

    Hoop conjecture (K.S. Thorne, 1972): The conjecture (as so far unproven, although there is substantial proof to support it) that a non-spherical object, non-spherically compressed, will only form a black hole whenever all parts of the

  • Q : Define Hubbles law Hubble's law (E.P.

    Hubble's law (E.P. Hubble; 1925): The relationship discovered between radial velocity and distance. The further away a galaxy is away from is, the quicker it is receding away from us. The constant of proportionality is the Hubble cons