Technical report describing the purification and separation by distillation of UO2F2 from D2O. In the experiment which is discussed 2,129.6 lbs of UO2F2 were dissolved in 6,605 lbs of D2O. The average isotopic purity of the D2O decreased during the distillation from 99.77% to 99.73%. The dissolved impurities were less than those present originally in the heavy water.

Abstract. Samples of pile graphite, irradiated in a test-hole at Hanford for 15 months, have been assayed for radioactive C14, yielding 0.38 ± 0.04 microcuries per gram. At this level of activity, the pile graphite contains very valuable amounts of C14. The relation between the above assay and the probable average assay of pile graphite is discussed, and it is concluded that the latter is almost certainly above 0.3 uc/ gram. Controlled oxidation of this graphite, either with oxygen at ~ 750°C, or with chromic acid "cleaning solution" at room temperature, yields early fractions which are highly enriched in C14. Concentrations of 5-fold with oxygen, and 50-fold with CRO{sub3}, have been observed. The relation between the observed enrichment and the Wigner effect is discussed, and a mechanism accounting for the observations put forward. According to this, about 25% of the stable carbon atoms in the lattice have been displaced by Wigner effect, a large fraction of which have healed the migrating to crystal edges. All the C14 atoms have been displaced, and the same fraction of these migrate to the edges. The enrichment then results from surface oxidation, in the oxygen case. Predictions are made on the basis of this …