--%>

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 : Explain Chronology protection conjecture

    Chronology protection conjecture (S.W. Hawking): The notion that the formation of any closed time like curve will (automatically) involuntarily be destroyed by the quantum fluctuations as soon as it is made. In another words, the quan

  • 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 : Explain Newtons law of universal

    Newton's law of universal gravitation (Sir I. Newton): Two bodies exert a pull on each other with equivalent and opposite forces; the magnitude of this force is proportional to the product result of the two masses and is too proportional to the invers

  • Q : Faradays laws of electrolysis or

    Explain Faradays laws of electrolysis or describe Faradays first law and Faradays second law? Faraday's laws of electrolysis (M. Faraday):

  • Q : Define Zeeman Effect or Zeeman line

    Zeeman Effect: Zeeman line splitting (P. Zeeman; 1896): Zeeman Effect is the splitting of lines in a spectrum whenever the source is exposed to the magnetic field.

  • Q : Define Mole or SI unit of substance

    Mole: mol: The basic SI unit of substance, stated as the quantity of substance which contains as many elementary units (that is, atoms, molecules, ions, and so forth) as there are atoms in 0.012 kg of carbon-12.

  • Q : Define Centrifugal pseudo force

    Centrifugal pseudo force: A pseudo force which takes place whenever one is moving in uniform circular motion. One feels a "force" directed outward from the center of the motion.

  • Q : What is Avogadro constant Avogadro

    Avogadro constant: L; NA (Count A. Avogadro; 1811) The total number of items in a sample of a substance that is equivalent to the number of molecules or atoms in a sample of an ideal gas that is at customary temperature and pressure. It is equivalent

  • Q : Characteristics of electronics what is

    what is the characteristics of electronics ?

  • Q : Velocity of the particle Determine the

    Determine the Velocity of the particle in terms of component veocities?