In this project we compare the efficiency of different methods of depleting water of deuterium.
Deuterium is an isotope of hydrogen. Isotopes are variations on an atom's basic form through an increased or decreased number of neutrons. Deuterium contains a neutron in addition to a proton versus the basic form of hydrogen, protium, which has no neutrons (called "heavy water" due to the additional mass added by the neutron). The amount of deuterium within water can affect the strength of the hydrogen bonds within water and it is the precise amount of deuterium within water that has ensured that there is life on earth. If the average strength of the hydrogen bonds were weaker or stronger, water would be completely a gas or a solid. Hydrogen bonds occur when a hydrogen atom is attracted by strong forces towards two other atoms. In water, this is crucial as the bonds make up the complete structure of the molecule. However, one may still remove deuterium from water within limits without it freezing or evaporating to gas. Deuterium depleted water actually has some beneficial health effects. According to an January of 2011 article in Popular Science, studies have shown that deuterium depleted water (“light water”) can boost the immune system and significantly benefit the health of plant and animals. Additionally, "light water" has lengthened the lifespan of cancer patients undergoing treatment. People living in mountainous regions due to the glacier fed streams with low deuterium levels have been claimed to live extraordinarily long lives. Current scientific research as to why deuterium may be harmful is that it adversely affects the shape of enzyme molecules involved in DNA processes.
Current methods of depleting water of deuterium include electrolysis, distillation, high-temperature exchange method using hydrogen sulfide, and desalination from seawater. Feng Huang and Changgong Meng , authors of the Department of Chemistry at Dalian University of Technology in China claim that these methods are expensive, inefficient, and have damaging effects on the environment. Current methods involve very expensive, unique equipment and the use of particle physics and special labs. The goal of this project is to compare the efficiencies of two of these methods in a simplified, non-industrial environment.
To achieve this goal, we first distilled a known concentration of deuterium within water, and measured the amount of energy required to produce the deuterium depleted water output. We then planned to measure the concentration of deuterium with a spectrometer in the water before and after this process. A contrasting method of producing deuterium-depleted water was to use electrolysis to separate the water into hydrogen and oxygen and recombine them to form deuterium depleted water using a fuel cell.
Deuterium is an isotope of hydrogen. Isotopes are variations on an atom's basic form through an increased or decreased number of neutrons. Deuterium contains a neutron in addition to a proton versus the basic form of hydrogen, protium, which has no neutrons (called "heavy water" due to the additional mass added by the neutron). The amount of deuterium within water can affect the strength of the hydrogen bonds within water and it is the precise amount of deuterium within water that has ensured that there is life on earth. If the average strength of the hydrogen bonds were weaker or stronger, water would be completely a gas or a solid. Hydrogen bonds occur when a hydrogen atom is attracted by strong forces towards two other atoms. In water, this is crucial as the bonds make up the complete structure of the molecule. However, one may still remove deuterium from water within limits without it freezing or evaporating to gas. Deuterium depleted water actually has some beneficial health effects. According to an January of 2011 article in Popular Science, studies have shown that deuterium depleted water (“light water”) can boost the immune system and significantly benefit the health of plant and animals. Additionally, "light water" has lengthened the lifespan of cancer patients undergoing treatment. People living in mountainous regions due to the glacier fed streams with low deuterium levels have been claimed to live extraordinarily long lives. Current scientific research as to why deuterium may be harmful is that it adversely affects the shape of enzyme molecules involved in DNA processes.
Current methods of depleting water of deuterium include electrolysis, distillation, high-temperature exchange method using hydrogen sulfide, and desalination from seawater. Feng Huang and Changgong Meng , authors of the Department of Chemistry at Dalian University of Technology in China claim that these methods are expensive, inefficient, and have damaging effects on the environment. Current methods involve very expensive, unique equipment and the use of particle physics and special labs. The goal of this project is to compare the efficiencies of two of these methods in a simplified, non-industrial environment.
To achieve this goal, we first distilled a known concentration of deuterium within water, and measured the amount of energy required to produce the deuterium depleted water output. We then planned to measure the concentration of deuterium with a spectrometer in the water before and after this process. A contrasting method of producing deuterium-depleted water was to use electrolysis to separate the water into hydrogen and oxygen and recombine them to form deuterium depleted water using a fuel cell.