Technical report summarizing our knowledge of the chemical effects of ionizing radiation upon water and upon aqueous solutions of inorganic compounds. The types of radiation considered are beta rays, gamma and X rays, and heavy particles, notably neutrons, deuterons, alpha rays and fission recoils.

Technical report. Long-time tests have been made on the effect of various types of radiation on the corrosion of 2S aluminum in simulated W water. In no case was any acceleration of corrosion by the radiation observed; the effect of radiation, if any, appeared to be a protective one. Deuteron irradiation did accelerate the corrosion of mild steel at low flow rates in hot water of pH 6 to 7, but no appreciable effect was observed with copper, stainless steel, or tuballoy. The general theory of the effect of radiation on corrosion is discussed, with the conclusion that no acceleration of corrosion by radiation is to be expected in most cases of practical interest.

A report which investigated vacuum distilation, entrainer gas distillation, and entrainer gas plus bromine vapor distillation.

Aluminum oxide occupies a larger volume than the aluminum it contains would fill as metal, consequently, the assumption has been made that holes in metallic aluminum would close by a sufficient amount of oxidation. Therefore, we were asked to investigate the rate of plug formation under conditions to be expected in the pile. For the latter we were requested to approach the pile conditions as nearly as we could by employing the Chicago cyclotron. It seems to us that the problem divides itself into two separate questions: (1) under what conditions may holes be expected to close? (2) if holes do close how much corrosion of uranium may be expected before the closure becomes impervious to water vapor? In this report only the first question is considered. The experiments and theory coupled with the data collected by other workers on the project definitely define the limits within which pores in the aluminum cans may be expected to close by an oxidation process. Under the most favorable conditions only small holes may be sealed in this manner. In the large majority of the cases the holes not only fail to close but become larger.

Technical report. The object of the research is to determine the procedure and equipment for the preparation of U233 on a semi-works scale. The general proposed procedure is that thorium carbonate in aluminum cans will be irradiated with pile neutrons. The Pa233 resulting from neutron absorption the Th232 and the decay of Th233 will be extraction from 99% of the thorium and the natural U in thorium by MnO2 precipitations. The Pa233 will then be allowed to decay to U233 which in turn will be isolated from the remaining Th and partially decayed Pa233 by ether extraction.

The following report calculates how many neutrons are produced by the O-16([alpha]-n) reaction in a thin and uniform polonium oxide layer.

Abstract: An ionization chamber for use in counting alpha particle activity from the air has been devised for counting samples collected with the electrostatic precipitator. The chamber is an adaptation of the breech-locking standard chamber, with a cylindrical high voltage electrode into which the collection foil is placed, and a coaxial rod as a collecting electrode. A geometrical efficiency of close to 50% is obtained.

ABSTRACT. When solutions of high specific alpha activity are to be assayed for product, it is often difficult to obtain reproducible results by diluting the solution sufficiently to remove a small volume from which a sample can be prepared and counted at 52% geometry. In order to assay such a solution, most reproducible results have been obtained with minimum effort in sample preparation by making use of low geometry chambers. Two types of low geometry chambers are described: 1) The air-screen type which reduces the geometry simply by placing screens of various transparencies above the sample; and 2) The vacuum low geometry chamber which accomplishes geometry reduction by increasing the distance between sample and collecting electrode thus decreasing the solid angle subtended by the sample and aperture through which the particles pass into the ionization chamber. This type chamber was developed concurrently by this group and the instrument group of Chemistry Section C-I at the Metallurgical Laboratory. Because the geometry of the air-screen type chamber is quite critical to sample spreading and be- cause 12 mm sample plates are required, it has found very little use. On the other hand, the vacuum chamber, because it is noncritical to sample spreading …

Abstract. The effect of various inhibitors on the production of CrIII in W waters containing chromatic has been studies at a variety of pH's in the CP-3 pile. The addition of 2 ppm NaClO3 appears to have little effect a a pH of 5.3, but 2 ppm NaClO3 cr 0.15 ppm of Cl2 (in the form of NaOCl) somewhat decreases the amount of chromatic reduced at a pH of 7.1. The inhibition is not great enough, however, to reduce the amount of CrIII formed to the maximum concentration permissible at W (0.02 ppm). The addition of 3 ppm (NH4)2S2O3 as an inhibiter will permit W water to be used a a Ph of 7.0, but not at a pH of 6.5 as far as chromate reduction is concerned. The concentration of CrIII would be 0.01 ppm and 0.05 ppm, respectively, after one passage through the pile. Previous conclusion as to the effects of temperature, pH, intensity and the addition of ammonium persulfate, which had been reached from experiments with simulation W water, have been checked by studies with solutions made from water chipped directly from Hanford. All of the effects noted were found to be similar to those already reported, …

Abstract: The counting accuracy of the Chicago Scalers, Models 961A and 961B, is a function of the bias setting of the limiter (V2). this report gives quantitative data supporting this thesis. A method of making bias settings is suggested. These tests were run at the suggestion of Mr. V. C. Hanson.

The temperature coefficient of eta has been measured with the thermal column of the Argonne pile using uranium foils of different isotopic ratios. The temperature change was effected by filtering neutrons through silver. The measured fractional change per degree centigrade is [formula].

Abstract: Experiments on colloid milling and pumping show that uranium trioxide, when carefully dehydrated, can be dispersed in water to form a relatively stable slurry, suitable for a homogeneous slurry pile. At temperatures considerably below those of anticipated pile operation particle size growth occurs attended by increase in settling rate and decrease in viscosity. Theses properties of the slurries may be strongly affected by impurities present as well as by special operating conditions.

Technical report abstract. The present state of knowledge concerning the effect of pile radiation on a variety of solid materials is reviewed. Radiation corrosion will not be a serious hazard for aluminum or stainless steel but it can be for iron or lead if either are exposed to water. Apart from corrosion the principal uncertainty is in regard to the Wigner effect on the behavior of metals. There is at present no ground for optimism regarding the behavior of tuballoy. The effect on aluminum or a bonding material while less severe must also be considered serious. The expectation in regard to graphite is that its behavior will not cause trouble during the first 100 days of operation although serious troubles will probably arise within two years of operation. Organic materials can be used safely only in regions of limited exposure.

Fermi, Anderson, and Nagle's experimental distribution of Indium resonance neutrons around a point source of fission neutrons in water has been fitted by analytic expressions which are source functions in the two-group, three-group, Fermi and Christy-Wheeler pile theory. The Christy-Wheeler function (exponential followed by a Gaussian) is the best fit; the two-group function (exponential) is slightly better than the Fermi Gaussian.

Various experimenters have shown (H.H. Gersman U.S. Patent 2,335,590, Nov. 30, 1943; Aluminum Co. of America, various technical papers; also CT-482) that when a billet is extruded by proper technique into a rod (or tube by a floating mandril) that flow of material is streamline and and the extruded article is essentially a space replica of the billet, with linearly distorted coordinates. Advantage is taken of this fact in the manufacture of alclad tubing in which a billet containing an inner core of one alloy with the outer part of another alloy cast around it is extruded together into an integral tube, e.g., to combine high corrosion resistance with high strength. The following experiments were carried out because of the desirability of obtaining a control rod which can be water cooled (or immersed in P9) and which contains boron. For some pile structures it may be desirable to have the major portion of the energy released by the neutron absorption of the control rod be spend in the rod itself by the nuclear reactions [formula] rather than in the surrounding media as is the case when absorption of neutrons is by cadmium according to the reaction [formula]. In the later …

It is usual to determine the density of neutrons by using foils of metals which become radioactive as a result of bombardment in the region under investigation. From the rate of disintegration of the newly formed radioactive element the number of neutrons absorbed can be calculated. By use of the capture cross section of the element of which the foil is composed the density of the neutrons can then be computed. By counting the alpha particles from a bismuth foil of known weight after exposure to neutrons the density of the neutrons which produced this activity can be calculated. The least accurately known value which enters into this evaluation is the capture cross-section of bismuth for pile neutrons. This value may be improved by future measurements. It is of importance only for absolute measurements of neutron density so that relative values can be measured with considerable accuracy on the basis of known data.

The resonance absorption of a lump is described in terms of three components. Calculations of resonance absorption are carried out using the model for the resonance spectrum of uranium recently derived; calculations are also made with variations of this model which involve local fluctuations in level strengths. For metal and oxide lumps the agreement with observation is satisfactory. For dilute mixtures, whose resonance activation was measured by Mitchell, computed values fall 20% to 30% above measured ones.

The following report describes and foretells the situation in medium in which neutrons are being (a)produced as fast neutrons, (b) slowed down to thermal speeds by impacts with nuclei, and (c) absorbed by nuclei in such a manner that sometimes fresh fast neutrons appear at the place where a thermal neutron has just appeared.

Introduction: Measurements of polonium content in solids are usually performed by dissolving the material and preparing a thin sample which can be measured with one of the available instruments. A measurement of the radiation emerging from the thick sample should be sufficient to evaluate the polonium content. For this reason a calculation has been performed and the results have been compared with those obtained by the thin sample method. Obviously this proposed method using thick samples would be faster.

Abstract: Pure UO2F2 is made by reaction between anhydrous HF and pure UO3. Although it is difficult to prepare free of water, it is not very hygroscopic. Prolonged heating at 100-105 degrees releases 99.9% of the water in an aqueous solution; the rate of loss of water is very small after saturation is reached. X-ray diffraction data give a density of 6.2 for the solid. The density of a 1.004 M solution is 1.274; the density of a saturated solution (5.130 M) is 2.400. The densities of F-9 solutions have been calculated from the densities of ordinary aqueous solutions, and the values are compared graphically. Data on the solubility indicate that there is a small increase in the range 25-100 degrees. Recovery of pure F-9 from a solution is hampered by hydrolysis of U)2F2 to give HF. The HF may be held back by addition of UO3 or CaO; the use of the latter, however, makes more difficult the recovery of all the F-9. Molar conductivities of UO2F2 solutions at 25 degrees, as well as the specific conductivities of a 1 molar solution containing various concentrations of UO3, have been determined. The addition of UO3 lowers the conductivity. The low …

Technical report with short reports from the (1) Experimental Nuclear Physics Group; (2) Theoretical Physics Group ; (3) Lattice Design Group; (4) Pile Design Group; (5) Exponential Experimental Group; (6) Radiation Group; and (7) Shielding Group.

From introductory paragraph: "In a slightly hypocritical water boiler the introduction of a single neutron may give rise to a fairly large burst of neutrons which dies out slowly. As was shown some time ago by Frankel and Nelson with the help of A. Horn the statistics of this multiplication process can be treated in a simple way for the hypothetical case that the number of neutrons produced per fission is two."

The transition region between two parts of a pile which have different compositions is investigated. In the case where the moderator is the same in both parts of the pile, it is found that the diffusion constant times thermal neutron density plus diffusion constant times fast neutron density satisfied the use pile equations everywhere, right to the boundary. More complicated formulae apply in a more general case.

It was desired to determine a method of evaporating boron to form a rather pure uniform tenacious coat of specified thickness. These coats are needed as monitoring films for neutron intensities, particularly in steel ionization cylinders. The most satisfactory method of evaporating boron employed a graphite filament. A mixture of amorphous boron and Carbenoid A was painted onto the filament which was then heated by electrical resistance method to 2300 degree C at which temperature the boron evaporated. Opaque films with purities up to 98% boron or better could be deposited by this method. Much heat was liberated by the filament, and it was found necessary to cool the steel cylinders during evaporation to prevent alloying of boron with the steel. Cathodic deposition also proved satisfactory for producing high purity films; this method has the advantage that little or no heat is produced during the process, but requires much time. Other less efficacious methods of depositing lighter films of born were developed; these are included in the following discussion.