------------------------- Abell GC, Matson LK, Steinmeyer RH, Bowman RC Jr, Oliver BM; Phys. Rev. B: Condens. Matter 41 (1990) 1220. "Helium release from aged palladium tritide". ** Tritium decays by beta emission and forms He; so if you let PdT(x) stand, you accumulate He in the Pd. An interesting question for cold fusion people looking for He, where should they look for it? In the solution or gas outside the Pd, or inside? In other words, how fast does any He come out? These authors examine this and find that, for small He "loadings" (<0.5 He/Pd), the He is practically not released, and that temperatures exceeding 1300 K are needed to drive it out. Oct-89/Jan-90 ------------------------- Aberdam D, Avenier M, Bagieu G, Bouchez J, Cavaignac JF, Collot J, Durand R, Faure R, Favier J, Kajfasz E, Koang DH, Lefievre B, Lesquoy E, Pessard H, Rouault A, Senateur JP, Stutz A, Weiss F; Phys. Rev. Lett. 65 (1990) 1196. "Limits on neutron emission following deuterium absorption into palladium and titanium". ** This group has a new type of neutron detector which will detect any neutron with an energy > 1MeV and allows discrimination against Compton electron background. This was used in an underground lab, where the neutron background was a low 1.7 n/day. Both electrochemical and pressurization cold fusion experiments were done, closely following the example of FPH, Jones+ and De Ninno+. In some of the electrochemical runs, the currents were abruptly changed several times, to test for dynamical effects. Dynamical effects were also attempted with the gas absorption runs (up to 60 bars), by temperature changes between that of liquid N2 and 950 degC, both fast and slowly. In all cases, something like 1E-26 n/pair/s was measured as an upper limit, or a factor of 100 below Jones et al's results. No bursts were observed. Dec-89/Sep-90 ------------------------- Abriola D, Achterberg E, Davidson M, Debray M, Etchegoyen MC, Fazzini N, Niello JF, Ferrero AMJ, Filevich A, Galia MC, Garavaglia R, Garcia Bermudez G, Gettar RT, Gil S, Grahmann H, Huck H, Jech A, Kreiner AJ, Macchiavelli AO, Magallanes JF, Maqueda E, Marti G, Pacheco AJ, Percz ML, Pomar C, Ramirez M, Scassera M; J. Electroanal. Chem. 265 (1989) 355. "Examination of nuclear measurement conditions in cold fusion experiments". ** They find levels of gamma and neutron radiation 1/1000 of those of FPH. No comment. (4-) May-89/Jun-89 ------------------------- AbuTaha AF; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 391. "Cold fusion - engineering perspectives". ** AbuTaha further develops his theory that 'cold fusion' is not fusion, but the release of embrittlement energies, i.e. of energy stored after crack formation. Crack propagation can then suddenly or over a time period release large amounts of energy, up to the FPH claim of 4 MJ/cm**3 in metals such as Pd and Ti or Ni. This can explain all, including the FPH melt-down (AbuTaha describes an explosive event, due to hydrogen embrittlement, observed in the early 1970's). He clearly believes that this phenomenon can be used, but we must learn to control and optimise it. ?/Dec-90 ------------------------- AbuTaha AF; J. Fusion Energy 9(3) (1990) 345. "Cold fusion - the heat mechanism". ** The author's thesis is that the palladium, and not the deuterium, is the source of the "excess heat" measured by some workers. The deuterium causes strain build-up in the metal, and at some point this is released by crack formation and propagation, which also generates sufficient heat to explain all. As in simple metal tensile tests, in which crack formation causes a rise in temperature, this effect can account for the heat observed by FPH. The effect cannot be used to generate power. ?/Sep-90 ------------------------- Adachi G, Sakaguchi H, Nagao K; J. Alloys Comp. 181 (1992) 469. "(3)He and (4)He from D2 absorbed in LaNi5". ** One of the branches of the d-d fusion reaction leads to the formation of (3)He, and this should be possible to detect if allowed to accumulate in a closed system. Mass spectrometry was used here to do this, from deuterium absorbed in LaNi5 alloy. The alloy (52.2 g) was carefully degassed at 1123 K and 1.3E-03 Pa for half a day. 99.5% pure D2 at 7.9E05 Pa pressure was then admitted and the temperature cycled between 363 and 273 K to ensure absorption. After this, two experiments were run for 40 days and 28 days, respectively, cycling the temperature. Samples of the initial gas were also taken as background. Finally, the alloy was degassed again to obtain absorbed gases. In the MS measurements, the ratios of (3)He to (4)He, as well as to the impurity gases Ne, Ar Kr and Xe were measured as checks. Both in these ratios and the absolute amounts of (3)He found, there was a clear increase in (3)He, not explicable in terms of contamination from the air. The amount corresponds to a fusion rate of about 1.3/s, which is roughly equal to 1E-23 fusions/dd- pair/s. ------------------------- Adler PN, Schulte RL, Margolin H; Metall. Trans. 21A (1990) 2003. "Deuterium surface segregation in titanium alloys". ** Deuterium enrichment in the near-surface region, kinetics of segregation, and factors contributing to it, are discussed. Nuclear reaction analysis (NRA) showed that there is in fact spotwise enrichment (segregation) at the surface of alpha-phase TiD but not in beta-phase ditto. Some of the deuterium may be trapped at surface defects without deuteride formation. ?/Jul-90 ------------------------- Aiello S, De Filippo E, Lanzano G, Lo Nigro S, Pagano A; Fusion Technol. 18 (1990) 115. "Nuclear fusion experiment in palladium charged by deuterium gas". ** The team performed an experiment similar to that of the De Ninno team, with palladium instead of titanium under pressurised D2 with various temperature cycling programs. An NE-213 detector measured neutrons with gamma discrimination, a BaF2 detector measured gamma emission and charged particles were measured by a silicon surface barrier detector. Nothing significant was found. The authors state, however, that the expected cold fusion rate of about 1E-23 fusions/s/pair would give signals well below their apparatus' ability to detect them. Feb-90/Aug-90 ------------------------- Albagli D, Ballinger R, Cammarata V, Chen X, Crooks RM, Fiore C, Gaudreau MPJ, Hwang I, Li CK, Linsay P, Luckhardt SC, Parker RR, Petrasso RD, Schloh MO, Wenzel KW, Wrighton MS; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 133. "Measurement and analysis of neutron and gamma-ray emission rates, other fusion products, and power in electrochemical cells having Pd cathodes". ** An experiment, in which the Pd cathodes, electrolyte and effluent gases were analysed for fusion products. The claim that (4)He is a major product was examined by means of MS. Constant temperature calorimetry was done, and neutrons and gammas counted; tritium was monitored and surface x-ray spectroscopy at the Pd done. The MS results (from a very high-resolution MS instrument) did show a (4)He peak, but it showed the same peak for the ambient laboratory air. There were no results to support cold fusion. The authors make some comments on cold fusion claims, pointing to experimental difficulties. For example, the FPH(89) excess heat can indeed be conceived in terms of a chemical reaction (as also pointed out by Kreysa). ?/Jul-90 ------------------------- Alber D, Boebel O, Schwarz C, Duwe H, Hilscher D, Homeyer H, Jahnke U, Spellmeyer B; Z. Phys. A: At. Nucl. 333 (1989) 319. "Search for neutrons from cold nuclear fusion". ** Attempt to repeat FPH and Jones+'s experiments: no neutrons. (10-) May-89/Jul-89 ------------------------- Alberg MA, Wilets L, Rehr JJ, Mustre de Leon J; Phys. Rev. C 41 (1990) 2544. "Upper limits to fusion rates of isotopic hydrogen molecules in palladium". ** Calculation, using the Born-Oppenheimer approximation, of fusion rates of H2 (H being any given hydrogen isotope) molecules in PdH. Find that fusion rates are enhanced over those for H2 gas but the rates are still 10-20 orders of magnitude lower (at ca. 1E-33/pair/s) than claimed. Sep-89/Jun-90 ------------------------- Aleksan R, Avenier M, Bagieu G, Bouchez J, Cavaignac JF, Collot J, Cousinou MC, Declais Y, Dufour Y, Durand R, Faure R, Favier J, Kajfasz E, De Kerret H, Koang DH, Lefievre B, Lesquoy E, Mallet J, Nagy E, Obolensky M, Pessard H, Pierre F, Stutz A, Wuethrick JP; Phys. Lett. B 234 (1990) 389. "Limits on electrochemically induced fusion of deuterium by neutron flux measurements". ** Attempted to reproduce cold fusion by electrolysis of D2O. A very sensitive neutron detector ((6)Li doped organic liquid scintillator NE320) was used to detect neutrons. An upper limit of about 50 n/s was obtained, which is 30 times smaller than that claimed by FPH, and less than that of Jones+. Oct-89/Jan-90 ------------------------- Alessandrello A, Bellotti E, Cattadori C, Antonione C, Bianchi G, Rondinini S, Torchio S, Fiorini E, Guiliani A, Ragazzi S, Zanotti L, Gatti C; Il Nuovo Cimento A103 (1990) 1617. "Search for cold fusion induced by electrolysis in palladium". ** The aim was here to search for signals from d-p and d-d fusion during the electrolysis at palladium, as well as to possibly induce fusion by mechanically straining the electrode, so as to initiate crack formation. Gamma, neutron, helium and tritium emissions were all monitored as well as heat, in a low-background environment, under the Gran Sasso massif. Heat effects were measured by means of several thermocouples in the cells, with resistor calibration. Four radiation detectors were used: two (3)He detectors, one NaI detector and one intrinsic Ge diode, with appropriate shielding and calibrations. In none of the experiments, radiation emissions beyond the background, were detected. The upper limit then becomes around 6 orders of magnitude lower than the fusion rates claimed by FPH. Mechanical strain - i.e. microcracks - made no difference. Tritium analysis showed only the normal electrolytic enrichment. No helium was found, and no excess heat outside error limits. This extensive experiment does not support cold fusion. Jul-90/Nov-90 ------------------------- Alexander KF; Wissensch. Fortschr. 39 (1989) 9 (in German). "Cold nuclear fusion". ** An early review of the CNF affair, with a few good references and acid comments. A criticises the superficiality of FPH's paper and states that Nature would not accept it (Nature does not say this), and deplores the lack of control experiments with normal water. Jones et al's paper fares much better with Alexander and he quotes earlier work of the Jones group, on muon catalysis and the piezo-effect (see Van Siclen and Jones 1986). ?/Sep-89 ------------------------- Altaiskii MV, Artekha SN, Barts BI, Bar'yakhtar VG, Moiseev SS; Vopr. Atom. Nauk. Tekh. Ser.: Fiz. Radiats. Povr. Radiats. Mater. 1990(1)(52) 78 (in Russian). "Fluctuational enhancement of quantum mechanical and wave barrier penetrability and some physical consequences". ** Both the present authors and Koonin have suggested that it is not the mean physical states in the metal hydride lattice, that set the cold fusion rate, but the fluctuations in all lattice parameters, including the Coulomb barrier to a close d-d approach. In analogy with the Debye-Valera factor of solid state theory, such a factor is expected here, and it can lead to greatly enhanced rates of cold fusion. Some mathematical theory indicates that for a d-d distance >= 0.2A, i.e. r>=ra=n**(-1/3), n = electron gas density, there is effective attraction between the d's. Finally, fluctuations might also be used deliberately to enhance fusion rates in crystals. Dec-89/? ------------------------- An X-W, Yan H-K, Han B-X, Guo D-J, Xie D-Y, Zhu Q-H, Hu R-H; Thermochim. Acta 183 (1991) 107. "Calorimetric investigation of electrochemically induced nuclear fusion of deuterium". ** A thoroughly performed experiment. Two cells, one with heavy and one with light water, were operated in series, closely matched. Over longer periods, the same constant current was run through the two cells, and the cell voltages were monitored throughout. Calibration heating was used to check the cell constants as a function of temperature. The identical Pd rods, 5.9 mm in dia. and 47 mm exposed lengths, were pretreated in molten NaOH; the electrolytes were purified by preelectrolysis with Pt cathodes. It was noted here that the heavy water electrolyte (0.1 M LiOD) was markedly more viscous than the light electrolyte (0.1 M LiOH). Mechanical stirring, beyond the bubbles generated, was provided, and it was found that the bubbles alone were not adequate. The cell constants were temperature dependent. The volumes of evolved gases were as expected from the electrolysis current. Currents of 0.6A, 0.8A, 1 A and finally 1.3 A were applied for respectively 98 h, 13 h, 16.5 h and (21+72) h. No recombination was found to take place, and no excess heat outside the error limits of about 5% was found. The authors conclude that in the FPALH-90 paper, there was insufficient stirring and that it is important to know the cell constant, as a function of temperature. Sep-90/? ------------------------- Anghaie S, Froelich P, Monkhorst HJ; Fusion Technol. 17 (1990) 500. "On fusion/fission chain reactions in the Fleischmann-Pons 'cold fusion' experiment". ** Suggest that the explanation of cold fusion rates may lie in fission/fusion chain reactions involving deuterons, (6)Li and (7)Li as consumables; protons, tritons, neutrons and (3)He as intermediates and (4)He and Be as products. Starting with some rather shaky (but non-essential) electrochemical arguments, leading to enormous concentrations of deuterons and Li+ ions at the Pd surface, the team suggests that weak fusion sets a chain reaction going, that could just be self-sustaining. Several possible chains are discussed. Criticality cannot, however, be achieved. Heat production without particle or tritium emission can be explained by this mechanism. (4)He is produced, and the authors suggest that people who find excess heat should look for (4)He. Dec-89/May-90 ------------------------- Antanasijevic R, Lakicevic I, Maric Z, Zevic D, Zaric A, Vigier JP; Phys. Letters A 180 (1993) 25. "Preliminary observations on possible implications of new Bohr orbits (resulting from electromagnetic spin-spin and spin-orbit coupling) in 'cold' quantum mechanical fusion processes appearing in strong 'plasma focus' and 'capillary fusion' experiments". ** After 1989, there was some disillusionment with cold fusion, because the phenomenon could not be reproduced, and no satisfactory model was proposed. At Nagoya, new evidence appeared which changes the picture: excess heat is confirmed, and ash has been found, although not in sufficient amounts. The nuclear processes may not be due to the same process yielding the heat. This may instead come from new (hitherto neglected) spin-spin and spin-orbit couplings appearing under special conditions. The nuclear ash may be due to large effective electron masses; and this leads to magnetic effects from the splitting of currents in capillaries. All this suggests an experiment, reported in this paper. Both plasma focus PF and capillary fusion CF were tried. For PF, energies up to 40 kJ, with potentials up to 40 kV were applied, with Pd foils mounted on one electrode. For CF, materials used were LiOD, D2O, deuterated ferrocyanide, deuterated Pd powder and Pd. Neutron busts were measured with a large NE232 liquid scintillation tank and 12 photomultipliers around it. Neutron yields smaller than 1000/pulse were obtained in these preliminary experiments; higher input energies may be needed. Apr-93/Aug-93 ------------------------- Antonov AV, Benetskii BA, Ginodman VB, Zherikhina LN, Klyachko AV, Konobeevskii ES, Mordovskoi MV, Popov VI, Rozantsev AI, Tskhovrebov AM; Sov. Phys. Lebedev Inst. Rep. 1990 (5) 52. Originally: Kratk. Soobshch. Fiz. 1990(5) 38. "An attempt to observe cold thermonuclear fusion during the electrolysis of heavy water". ** Not simply neutron emission is needed to confirm cold fusion, but n emission with the correct spectrum; notably, a peak at 2.5 MeV. Two electrolysis cells were used. In one, 1 g of Pd plate of 5 cm**2 area was the cathode in an electrolyte of D2O + 30% D2SO4, and a current of 20-300 mA; in the other a 7g Pd plate of the same size in D2O + 7% LiOD and a current of 2A. Neutrons were measured from scintillation of a stilbene crystal plus zero- crossing gamma discrimination and gamma background correction. In both cases, electrolysis was performed for one hour with the cell in the detector space, and for one hour with the cell well away from it, alternating thus for 58 and 90 hours, respectively. Nothing significant was detected. The addition of a BF3 detector to stretch neutron bursts and prevent saturation still did not produce evidence of cold fusion. Mar-90/? ------------------------- Anufriev GS, Boltenkov BS; Vopr. At. Nauki Tekh. Ser.: Fiz. Radiats. Povr. Radiats. Materialoved. 1991, (2(56)) 73 (in Russian). "Helium isotopes and hydrogen in aluminium and other metals". ** Isotopic distributions and amounts of the isotopes of 3He, 4He, T and H were studied in some samples of Al produced by electrolysis. Out of several samples, one had not only larger than normal concentrations of both 3He and tritium, but also unusual T/H and 3He/4He ratios (4*10^-8 and 1.2, resp., against the more normal values 10^-11-12 and 10^-4, resp., it is not clear what is normal here). Some conventional hypotheses are advanced, all based on contamination from the lab; all can be rejected mostly in terms of diffusion arguments. An experiment is done with Ag, in which D is much more mobile, and yet it had less T; other experiments with Ni foils, too, did not achieve the same results as the Al. Although no detail is given, there are also correlations between 3He and T content in the Al and time of electrolysis in the cryolite bath. Some materials associated with Al in its manufacture, such as cryolite, lime stone, alumina, AlF3, "nephelitic concentrate" and Al(OH)3, did not have the extra isotopes, so they do not come from these raw materials. Only cold fusion, strongly stimulated by the electrolysis, is left. Nov-90/? ------------------------- Aoyama T, Mori C, Uritani A, Matsui T, Naito K; Radioisotopes 40 (1991) 188. "Highly reliable low-level neutron detection using (3)He proportional counters". ** For the very low-level neutron fluxes in cold fusion experiments, special precautions must be taken. This paper describes some techniques for this. Perfect noise rejection is required as well as the application of Poisson statistics. The paper gives details of the construction of three identical (3)He counters with 42% efficiency. These were placed around a cold fusion electrolysis cell, and there had an overall efficiency of 2.5%. Noise comes from high voltage leakage and external noise. Humidity control can eliminate the first, and are in any case rejected by not being coincident on all three. External noise is common to all detectors, on the other hand, and is eliminated completely by using a high detector voltage (1300V) and setting the pulse height discriminator high. Dec-90/? ------------------------- Apostol M, Dorobantu IA; Rev. Roum. Phys. 34 (1989) 233. Cited in Chem. Abstr. 111:171771 (1989). "On a competition between solid state and nuclear scale energies. A possible theoretical approach to cold fusion in palladium and other transitional metals". ** Theory says it's possible. ------------------------- Arata Y, Zhang Y-C; Koon Gakkaishi 20(4) (1994) 148 (in Japanese, Engl. abstr.). "A new energy generated in DS-cathode with 'Pd-black'". ** Experimental, Pd black, excess heat, res+ This is, as far as can be seen and going by the abstract, much the same paper as that of the same authors in Proc. Japan. Acad. 70 Ser. B (1994) 106. It reports on "spill-over deuterium" in a long-term closed-cell electrolysis using a bottle-shaped Pd cathode with Pd powder inside the bottle. Excess energy at ca. 200 MJ was released over a period of 3000 h and there were clear signs of the excess power decreasing after the cell current was turned off, and recovery upon switching on again. ------------------------- Arata Y, Zhang Y-C; Fusion Technol. 22 (1992) 287. "Reproducible 'cold' fusion reaction using a complex cathode". ** This is essentially the same paper as published by the authors in Kagu Yugo Kenkyu 67 (1992) 432, in Japanese. It describes a Pd or Ni cathode "plasma-sprayed" with a Pd layer. The authors point out that if cnf takes place, it does so within the cathode, and it is there the temperature should be measured. Neutron emissions from an electrolysis cell were measured with two detectors; a (3)He and a BF3 one, with surrounding paraffin blocks and Cd shielding. A complex Pd cathode, after charging for 240 h, was held in air and a strong heating effect was observed. A similar cathode but without the extra Pd layer did not do this. When sand-blasted, this one, too, heated up in air after being charged again. Thus, an uneven surface favours fusion. Neutron counts, too, were higher than blanks or runs with H2O, with these sprayed rods. Aug-91/Sep-92 ------------------------- Arata Y, Zhang Y-C; Proc. Japan Acad. 66(B) (1990) 33. "'Cold' fusion caused by a weak 'on-off effect'". ** If the temperature build-up in palladium under deuteration is high, a temperature can be reached where an explosive release of deuterium occurs; this is called the strong on-off effect, and A&Z ascribe a cold fusion reaction to it. In this paper they state that the "weak" on-off effect, where decomposition occurs at lower temperatures, also causes cold fusion. Neutron detection appeared to coincide with on-off effects. Feb-90/Feb-90 ------------------------- Arata Y, Zhang Y-C; Proc. Japan Acad. 66(B) (1990) 110. "Corroborating evidence for 'cold' fusion reaction". ** In previous work, the authors had found intense neutron emissions when the powerful "on-off" effect is active. This happens when the cell, under electrolysis, reaches temperatures up to 110 degC (the "on" effect), and then goes into the "off" effect. If it goes "off" without reaching this high temperature, the authors speak of a weak on-off effect, and consider it important for cold fusion. Here, they used nickel, spray coated thinly with palladium. A paraffin block changed neutrons into thermal neutrons and detected these with a BF3 counter. This, they say, is a reliable way to detect fusion neutrons. Comparisons of neutron patterns over long times, with those from the background and from a (252)Cf source, showed that cold fusion did occur, both on palladium and palladium-coated nickel. Jun-90/? ------------------------- Arata Y, Zhang Y-C; Fusion Technol. 18 (1990) 95. "Achievement of an intense cold fusion reaction". But see: "Corrigendum", FT 19 (1991) 196. ** This paper proposes the conditions necessary for achieving cold fusion (more or less) controllably. These are: a large Pd electrode must be used, and the current periodically switched on and off. The team has previously described their "on-off" effect. In this, deuterium must be forced quickly into the Pd, and quickly exhausted by switching the current off. Quick loading and release of deuterium causes internal high temperatures and pressures of up to 5000 atm, and the authors on several occasions have observed large neutron events of up to 1E13 n per event. Several experiments are described. Titanium is not suitable, as it does not absorb deuterium to a sufficient depth. The authors measured the heat exchange and there was no excess heat; all heat released (about 50% of Joule heating) could be accounted for by chemical reactions. The authors do not believe in excess heat, calculating from their neutron emissions that this could only be expected to reach about 0.1 mW. They also assume standard physics (e.g. 1:1 branching ratio) for the fusion reaction. In some cases, the electrode reached a temperature of 110 degC, at which deuterium is released spontaneously and copiously; an automatic on-off effect. Explosions and ignition phenomena were also observed. The authors do not, unfortunately, make clear whether the large neutron events are associated with current switching or spontaneous on-off events. The conclusion is that this effect reconciles the differences between successful and failed cold fusion experiments; that long electrolysis times are besides the point; and that the use of small Pd electrodes is "a fatal mistake". The recipe: use a large electrode, charge it for 2-3 days to oversaturate it, turn off the current for a few hours, polish the cathode, put it back in and resume electrolysis. This produced the large neutron bursts. Feb-90/Aug-90 ------------------------- Arata Y, Zhang Y-C; Kaku Yugo Kenkyu 67(5) (1992) 432 (in Japanese). "'Cold' fusion in deuterated complex cathode". ** A new type of cathode, either Ni or Pd, was prepared by plasma spraying its surface with Pd. This layer activated the surface and a new type of heat generation was observed reproducibly. The experiment was done by electrolysis in 0.07 M LiOH in D2O, with a thermocouple to monitor the heat, and two neutron counters (one BF3 and one (3)He). Accumulated neutron counts as a function of time showed clear differences between D2O runs (higher) and control H2O runs (lower), the latter matching blank runs in air. Dec-91/? ------------------------- Arata Y, Zhang Y-C; Proc. Japan. Acad. 70 ser. B (1994) 106. 'A new energy caused by "Spillover-deuterium"'. ** Experimental, Pd powder, gas phase, surface structure, excess heat. Res+ The authors make three points at the outset: [A] surface structure of Pd is important; [B] lattice imperfections, cracks, local stresses are important. From this, they conclude that [C] "bottle-shaped" Pd electrodes, hollow, evacuated but filled with Pd powder, might be ideal for CNF. They used these "double-structured" cathodes in some experiments starting in 1992 and still in progress. Excess heat was found reproducibly and the authors theorise about "spillover deuterium". Sep-94/? ------------------------- Arata Y, Zhang Y-C; Kakuyuogo Kenkyo 69(8) (1993) 963 (in Japanese). "Excess heat in a double structure deuterated cathode". ** "A new type cathode, a double structure cathode which contained another Pd inside a Pd-rod was developed. Using the new cathode, remarkable excess heat larger than the input energy was observed consistently after a certain incubation period". (Cited directly from the English abstract). There are some Figures showing excess heat, and a picture of a double structure, with pressures of H and D marked, as well as the Nernst equation, noting pressures up to 5000 atm. One cathode apparently deformed explosively after prolonged electrolysis. Feb-92/Apr-93 ------------------------- Arata Y, Zhang YC; Proc. Jpn. Acad., Ser. B 66 (1990) 1. "Achievement of intense 'cold' fusion reaction". ** (I quote:) A Pd cathode of large size was activated by repeating intensive absorption and explosive exhaust of D compulsively due to the powerful on-off effect to induce intense mobility and a huge inner pressure of D within the Pd cathode. This characteristic played a role in achieving cold fusion. A considerable number of neutrons far beyond the background level, sometimes reaching >= 10**8 n/s, were detected. The phenomena were observed 10 times in one month, and the period was 30 min for the shortest and 40 h for the longest. The total number of neutrons generated was estimated to be 10**13 for 40 hours at the maximum, and it would be difficult to consider other any process than the nuclear fusion by D-D reaction. The large amount of excess heat produced during electrolysis was not due to unobserved nuclear fusion proposed by FPH (1989) but due to reaction heat produced by the intense absorption and explosive exhaust of the D into and out of the Pd. The Pd cathodes used by all other researchers were far smaller than the present one. This is likely the reason why the new on-off effect phenomenon and the generation of intense cold fusion was not found so far. Dec-89/? ------------------------- Arata Y, Zhang YC; Kaku Yugo Kenkyu 62 (1989) 398. Cited in Chem. Abstr. 112:224669 (1990). (In Japanese). "Achievement of intense 'cold fusion' reaction". ** Under conditions of intense charge and discharge of deuterium into/out of palladium, intense neutron emission due to cold fusion was observed. This was called the on-off effect. A large inner pressure of deuterium is a necessary condition for the cold fusion reaction. A large amount of excess heat produced during electrolysis was not, however, due to a nuclear reaction but due to the heat of reaction and the explosive exhaust of the D "into and out of" the Pd. ------------------------- Arista NR, Gras-Marti A, Baragiola RA; Phys. Rev. A: Gen. Phys. 40 (1989) 6873. "Screening effects in nuclear fusion of hydrogen isotopes in dense media". ** Calculation of fusion rates of hydrogen isotopes embedded in a uniform electron gas, and in the inhomogeneous medium given by a solid matrix. In both cases, the screening due to the electron background can help overcome coulomb repulsion. Results are similar to those of Koonin and Nauenberg (Nature 339) and cannot account for reported cold fusion rates in PdD. But temperature is found to be an important parameter and might encourage experiments along this line. See also Fujita for a similar idea. Jul-89/Dec-89 ------------------------- Armstrong RD, Charles EA, Fells I, Molyneux L, Todd M; Electrochim. Acta 34 (1989) 1319. "Some aspects of thermal energy generation during the electrolysis of D2O using a palladium cathode". ** Constant-flow calorimetry measurements showed no excess heat. Jun-89/Sep-89 ------------------------- Armstrong RD, Charles EA, Fells I, Molyneux L, Todd M; J. Electroanal. Chem. 272 (1989) 293. "A long-term calorimetric study of the electrolysis of D2O using palladium cube cathodes". ** Very careful work with good controls on the errors; no heat was found, that was not expected from non-nuclear processes. Also, an analysis of FPH's heat results showed that they, too, lie well within the experimental error limits and require no nonconventional explanations. Sep-89/Nov-89 ------------------------- Arnikar HJ; Ind. J. Chem. Sci. 4 (1990) 65. "'Cold fusion' - a misnomer". ** A recital of the author's belief that there is no cold fusion. There may be chemisorption or occlusion of electrolytically produced deuterium, both of which are exothermic and yield at most 10 eV, not 0.5 MeV as required for fusion. So fusion cannot be happening. As well, there ought to be helium, neutrons and gammas, and there is no good evidence for these. Ergo, nix. ------------------------- Arzhannikov AV, Kezerashvili GYa; Phys. Lett. A156 (1991) 514. "First observation of neutron emission from chemical reactions". ** A pair of nuclear physicists from Novosibirsk have had a go at cold fusion, and report their first results. Two chemical reactions were used as a test: in the first test, solid LiD granules were dropped gradually into a test tube containing D2O; in the second, a mixture of zinc metal and the complex beta-trans-Pd(ND3)2Cl2 (both deuterated as shown, and hydrated, ..NH3..) were ground to a powder and dropped into the tube. Temperature changes were monitored. Neutrons were measured using 6 (3)He counters with pulse height discrimination and calibration, to optimise these. The 6 counters' signals seem to have been added. Results: for LiD into D2O, temperature rose to 70 degC, the neutron emissions rose from background to about 1.7 times, and showing some spikes not seen in the background. For the complex powder, the temperature rose to 250 degC and the emission/background ratio to about 2. The paper concludes that these chemical reactions caused neutron emission but offers no explanations for the effect. Oct-90/Jul-91 ------------------------- Astakhov II, Davydov AD, Katargin NV, Kazarinov VE, Kiseleva IG, Kriksunov LB, Kudryavtsev DYu, Lebedev IA, Myasoedov BF, Shcheglov OP, Teplitskaya GL, Tsionskii VM; Electrochim. Acta 36 (1991) 1127. "An attempt to detect neutron and gamma radiations in heavy water electrolysis with a palladium cathode". ** 10 (3)He neutron counters were used, with pulse-height analysis, to detect neutrons; a scintillation spectrometer was used for gamma emissions. Electrolysis was done at a bulky Pd cathode, with membrane separation of the two electrodes. Results were that whether the cell was in the detection space, or heavy or light water was being electrolysed, made no difference to the neutron count, nor was any gamma emission detected. Lithium was found to be incorporated into the Pd, up to 0.5%. Its diffusion is finite in Pd, about 1E-10 cm**2/s, compared with 1E-07 for deuterium. Lithium incorporation might explain some of the anomalies observed by others, such as apparent excess heat. This will be reported in a future paper. Aug-90/May-91 ------------------------- Attas EM, Chambers KW, Dueck W, Dutton R, McIlwain AK; Nature (London) 344 (1990) 390 (29. March). "Solar flares and 'cold fusion'". ** This team monitored neutron emission from a FPH-type cell, and found a couple of bursts of neutron activity - one larger, one smaller. Instead of rushing into print or to their nearest patent office, however, they then checked solar flare records: at precisely the same time the neutron emissions occurred, there were solar flares, the larger correlating with the larger neutron burst, the smaller with the smaller. Solar flare records are thus another item on the list of things every cnf experimenter must check for. Mar-90/Mar-90 ------------------------- Augustynski J; Chimia 43 (1989) 99 (in French). "Commentaire: Pourquoi les experiences de 'fusion froide' de deuterium sont-elles si difficiles a reproduire". ** Looked at FPH's conditions. Discuss possible role of the Pt anode: it will dissolve to some extent and some Pt will then deposit on the Pd, perhaps inhibiting the surface reaction D+D->D2, just as thiourea does, and thus increasing the force driving D into the lattice. Incorporation of Li in Pd is also considered, e.g. the known compound PdLiD(0.7), or PdLi(0.06). This may occur either because of a raised electrode overpotential due to the inhibition, or there may be underpotential deposition of Li+. Questions such as how the presence in the lattice of Li might affect deuteron interaction, or possible fusion reactions involving Li, such as Li+d->(4)He+heat, will be examined in a future publication. (17-) Apr-89/Apr-89 ------------------------- Augustynski J, Ulmann M, Liu J; Chimia 43 (1989) 355. "Electrochemical measurements on palladium cathodes in LiOD/D2O solutions related to the 'cold fusion experiments'". ** The current/voltage behaviour of Pd electrodes polarized in an electrolysis cell in the title electrolyte was strongly affected by the impurity codeposition at the cathode. Pt, Pb and Zn have been detected on the surface after electrolysis. All cause changes of the i/E relationship, and Zn increases electrode potential, making possible Li deposition and LiD2 formation; some deposits inhibit the surface reaction D+D->D2. Lastly, there is some speculation that Li might take part in nuclear reactions in the presence of strong electric fields. Is it significant, the authors ask, that Kainthla et al (Electrochim. Acta 34 (1989) 1315) add NaCN, a known strong complexing agent for Zn++, to their electrolyte? Well, is it? Nov-89/Nov-89 ------------------------- Ault MR; Radiat. Protect. Managem. 8(3) (1990) 49. "Cold fusion: the story behind the headlines". ** A run-down, up to about the end of 1990, of the cold fusion story. Ault rejects Williams et al's (Harwell) paper's rebuttal, criticising it for its scatter gun approach. He concludes that cold fusion may well be real and needs further investigation. ------------------------- Azbel MYa; Solid State Commun. 76 (1990) 127. "Possibility of cold fusion". ** Having stated that cold fusion - as practised until now - has been disproved, A looks at the theory of Leggett and Baym, which showed that it is indeed not on. A asks, what conditions might make it possible? They are: a material in which high deuterium concentrations can be achieved, in which there are narrow electron bands and wide electron gaps and in which there is a highly energetic metastable state with d-d distances of around 0.1 Aangstroms. Pd and Ti are not suitable. May-90/Oct-90 ------------------------- Azumi K, Ishiguro S, Mizuno T, Seo M; J. Electroanal. Chem. 347 (1993) 111. "Acoustic emission from a palladium electrode during hydrogen charging and its release in a LiOH electrolyte". ** A Pd plate was mounted tightly coupled to a microphone in a 0.1 M LiOH solution in normal water, and the sound emissions collected. Time traces of these emissions showed that they peaked markedly when gas was being evolved, both at the cathodic and anodic potential scale ends. Power spectra showed that during cathodic charging, there were other acoustic components besides those due to hydrogen bubbles, and these were tentatively ascribed to metal cracking. Apr-92/Apr-93 ------------------------- Babu KSC, Lalla NP, Pandey RN, Tiwari RS, Srivastava ON; Adv. Hydrogen Energy 1990, 8(Hydrogen Energy Prog. VIII, Vol. 2), 1051. "On the formation of palladium deuteride and its relationship to suspected cold fusion". ** The authors note that it is not always appreciated that the formation of the metal deuteride is exothermic. They carried out a calorimetric experiment of their own, and found two regimes: the first, during deuteration, showed accountable heat (of deuteration); the second, upon full loading, was not so easy to account for. They also electrolysed in light water, after fully loading in heavy water, and here found the greatest excess heat, confirming the theoretical prediction that p-d fusion is favoured. Measurements of gamma emission also showed greatest deviation from the background for this p-d system. Cold fusion appears to be confirmed. ------------------------- Badurek G, Rauch H, Seidl E; Kerntechnik 54 (1989) 178. "Search for cold fusion in palladium-deuterium and titanium-deuterium". ** Repeated the two sorts of experiments, using four independent detection systems to detect neutrons and gamma radiation. An upper limit of 3.6*10**(-23)/s was found for D+D--> (3)He+n per pair. The paper also throws doubt on the Frascati claims; their neutron background is unusually low, and their claim that Ti releases its deuterium upon reaching room temperature is incorrect. Jul-89/? ------------------------- Balabanov NP; Nauchni Tr., Plovdivski Univ. 26(4,Fiz) (1988, publ 1989) 247 (in Bulgarian). "Hypothesis to explain electrochemically induced nuclear fusion" (my transl.) ** This paper, submitted on 5-May-89, lays out the problem of cnf, i.e. the imbalance between the large amount of heat and the small neutron flux. The author invokes mechanical friction effects to explain this, i.e triboelectronic and triboluminous emission. Any process that may lead to electron emission at sufficient energy might also cause fusion, by the formation of high voltage fields, up to 1E09 V/m. Such effects might be taking place at microregions in the palladium deuteride, due to the electrochemical loading with deuterium and subsequent mechanical effects. Some old references are given from the areas of mechanoemission (Kramer, late 1940's) and of tribochemistry (Thiessen et al, 1960's). 5-May-89/? ------------------------- Baldo M, Pucci R, Bortignon PF; Fusion Technol. 18 (1990) 347. "Relaxation toward equilibrium in plasmon-enhanced fusion". ** "There is no doubt that the fusion reaction rate within a metal lattice is dramatically higher than estimated for free deuterium molecules", say the authors. The fact that not everyone measures fusion effects, does not imply that Jones et al were mistaken. The recent cluster impact experiments of Beuhler et al indicate that the target plays an important role (I am quoting). The authors have previously considered plasmon interactions (at a conference) and in this paper, further consider the d-phonon interaction and deuteron screening due to particle-hole excitations. The conclusion is that the formation of quasi-deuterium molecules and phonon damping can lead to cold fusion rates comparable to those claimed by Jones et al, and that this will occur in bursts. Eventually, the system equilibrates and fusion rates drop to those for free D2 gas. Feb-90/Sep-90 ------------------------- Balej J, Divisek J; J. Electroanal. Chem. 278 (1989) 85. "Energy balance of D2O electrolysis with a palladium cathode. Part I. Theoretical relations". ** Anyone who intends to do calorimetry of D2O electrolysis must read this. The authors develop, in an extremely pedantic and fussy manner, reaction enthalpies for a widish range of operating temperatures. Nothing seems to have been left out, and the large (enthalpy of the overall electrolysis reaction) is mixed with the small (e.g. heat of evaporation of water), and even non-unity current efficiencies are considered - something these authors are experts at, since their daily bread is the economic electrolysis of water to produce hydrogen. In the thermodynamic tradition, however, only the overall process is considered, and local effects are ignored. See Part II under Divisek et al. Sep-89/Jan-90 ------------------------- Balescu R; Phys. Mag 11 (1989) 3 (French). Cited in Chem. Abstracts 111:141868 (1989). "Some like it cool". ** A review of the work of FPH, Jones+ and Scaramuzzi+. ------------------------- Balian R, Blaizot J-P, Bonche P; J. Phys. (France) 50 (1989) 2307. "Cold fusion in a dense electron gas." ** The authors calculate the Coulomb penetration factor for two deuterons immersed in a dense electron gas, using the Born-Oppenheimer approximation. They find that electronic densities orders of magnitude larger than those which could be expected in metallic palladium are required in order to bring the cold fusion rate to an observable value, or screening lengths down to 0.1A. Jun-89/Sep-89 ------------------------- Balke B, Cox L, Fackler O, Mugge M, Souers PC, Tsugawa RT, White RM; Phys. Rev. C42 (1990) 30. "Limits on neutron emission from 'cold fusion' in metal hydrides". ** Tried to measure neutrons from pressurised gas charged Ti sponge, shavings and Pd wire, under different conditions of charging and pretreatment. Using careful multiple neutron detection, in all cases, nothing above background was detected, no temperature response. After elimination of false readings of various kinds, no neutron bursts at all were found. Also tried loading with HD and DT gas; still no neutrons. These meticulously run experiments throw considerable doubt on all previous positive experiments with gas charging, finding 2-5 orders of magnitude lower neutron emissions than these other studies (Frascati, LANL). Mar-90/Jul-90 ------------------------- Banas J, Ciechanowski M, Dulinski M, Kreft A, Molenda J, Morstin K, Stoklosa A, Wozniak J; Nucl. Geophys. 3 (1989) 321. Cited in Chem. Abstr. 112:126738 (1990). "Geophysical aspects of cold nuclear fusion in condensed matter". ** An attempt to reproduce FPH's and Jones+' results. Nothing was found, but cosmic radiation was found to cause background fluctuations. ------------------------- Baranowski B, Filipek SM, Szustakowski M, Farny J, Woryna W; J. Less-Common Met. 158 (1990) 347. "Search for 'cold fusion' in some Me-D systems at high pressures of gaseous deuterium". ** The authors, experienced in high-pressure generation of metal hydrides, decided that this is a better route to PdD(x), as the loading is easier to control, more stable, and higher loadings can be achieved, than with electrolysis. Neutrons were monitored with liquid scintillation-, silver activation- and a CR-90 nuclear track detectors. Temperature of the metal samples was monitored. A large piece of Pd (5.63 cm**3, 5 times the large piece considered dangerous by FPH) was put under D2, at 0.8 GPa pressure and kept that way for 5 months. Loading factor is about unity, i.e. the octahedral sites in the Pd are filled. No heat nor neutrons were detected, beyond background. Raising the pressure to 2.56 GPa begins to fill some of the tetrahedral sites; this still showed nothing. A higher loading of 2 is achievable with Ni (NiD2) at 0.75 GPa, where it was held for 2 months without any emissions. Just in case there is anything special about electrolytic charging, the authors did this, too, under 0.6 GPa D2 pressure; still no emissions. Thus, 'cold fusion' is an error. Sep-89/Mar-90 ------------------------- Baranowski B, Filipek S, Raczynski W; Pol. J. Chem. 68 (1994) 845. "Electrolytic charging of palladium by deuterium at normal and high pressure conditions". ** The authors wish to clear up some of the confusion in the 'cold fusion' field, e.g. the figure of 10^26 atm, and comment on the problems of electrolytic loading of Pd with deuterium. High pressure electrochemical loading was also tried. 0.1 M LiOD and D2SO4 were the electrolytes used, and Pd wires as cathodes. Ambient pressure electrolysis at current densities up to 200 mA/cm^2 produced loadings corresponding only to some 400 atm, nowhere near the fugacity figure of 10^26 stated by FPH-89. High pressure electrolysis was also carried out, at up to 4.5 kbar. Here, loadings are achieved that place the Pd resistance on the falling branch. The authors conclude that the formation of D2 bubbles limits loading into Pd, and actual pressures within the metal. Dec-93/? ------------------------- Barts BI, Barts DB, Grinenko AA; Sov. J. Nucl. Phys. 55 (1992) 45. Originally in: Yad. Fiz. 55 (1992) 79. "Theory of nuclear reactions with the participation of slow charged particles in solids". ** Two aspects of the crystal environment of purported solid state cold fusion are investigated. One is the screening of d-d pairs by valence electrons of the crystal. It is shown that at low energies, this is very important and the rate of fusion can be enhanced by many orders of magnitude. The other is the possibility of two deuterons moving together into a region of minimum crystal potential at the centre of a cell, where their wave functions might overlap and the fusion rate can increase by one or two tens of orders of magnitude. These effects are not enough, however, to explain experimental claims. Jul-91/Jan-92 ------------------------- Barut AO; J. Hydrogen Energy 15 (1990) 907. "Prediction of new tightly-bound states of H2+ (D2+) and 'cold fusion' experiments". ** FPH(89) concluded that their results were due to an hitherto unknown nuclear reaction. Barut believes that the explanation may be tightly bound states of D2+ ions, and three-body interactions, which are called the anti- Born-Oppenheimer approximation, in which an electron is squeezed between two positive nuclei rapidly rotating about it. Barut develops this quantum-mechanical model. The formation of these "supermolecules" from only a tiny fraction of the deuterium could account for excess heat observations. One drawback is that normal hydrogen should do the same, and output about a quarter the excess heat. May-90/Dec-90 ------------------------- Barwick SW, Price PB, Williams WT, Porter JD; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 273. "Search for 0.8 MeV (3)He nuclei emitted from Pd and Ti exposed to high pressure D2". ** Track recording plastic films have been laid alongside Pd and Ti sheets exposed to D2 gas under >= 15 bars, to detect the neutrons from the n+(3)He branch of the fusion reactions. There was temperature and pressure cycling, and radiation background elimination. No evidence of cold fusion was found, with neutron upper limits of 0.7 and 2.5 fusions/s/cm**3, as compared with 20 and 260 measured by de Ninno et al. There were some alpha particles detected, arising from impurities in the metals (Th and U). ?/Sep-90 ------------------------- Bashkirov YuA, Baranova RKh, Bazanin BG, Kazakova VM; Pis'ma Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 16(19) (1990) 51 (in Russian). "Observation of neutron emission from electrolysis of heavy water". ** Cathodes of Pd (0.5 mm) and Ti (1 mm) and anodes of Pt or Au were electrolysed in 0.1-0.15 M LiOH and LiOD, at 150 mA/cm**2. Near the electrolysis cell were placed two neutron detectors; one a type SNM-56 containing 97% He and 3% Ar, the other an organic scintillation soup widely used in physics to detect high-energy neutrons. With low-noise photomultipliers, this allowed the team to detect the lower-energy neutrons expected from cold fusion. There was a temp. probe in the cell. For Pd, in heavy water, neutron emission showed a steady increase over the background, around double. The Fig. shows two bursts at 10-100 times the background, simultaneously on both detectors. At the same time (in most cases but not all) there was a temp. spike of a few degrees. A Ti cathode also emitted the larger steady neutron flux (the paper does not mention bursts for Ti). Jun-90/Oct-90 ------------------------- Bashko VA, Vit'ko VI, Goncharov IG, Zelenskii VF, Kovalenko GD, Krivoruchko SM, Ranyuk YuN, Tarasov IK; Vopr. Atom. Nauk Tekh. Ser.: Fiz. Radiats. Povrezhden. Radiats. Materialoved. 2(56) (1991) 54. Note: Chem. Abstracts (117:199600) has "Rashko" as the first author, and this will probably be the entry in the CAS database. "Study of the nuclear fusion reaction in palladium by the emission of neutrons upon electrolysis". ** This team from Kharkov undertook essentially a pure neutron search, from a CNF electrolysis, using two Pd cathodes, one of 182 g and the other 38 g, of chunky cylindrical shape and charged with 0.23 A/cm^2 and 1 A/cm^2, resp. The experiment runs stretched over many days, individual runs lasting 4-5 days. The cell was alternately placed within, and outside the detection volume with 1-hour periods of time. Several figures show neutron counts for these periods. An array of 14 (3)He neutron counters was divided into two sets of 7 and the detections treated by analogue and digital means. Careful statistical data reduction led to the conclusion that nothing other than noise was observed. Jun-91/? ------------------------- Basteev AV, Nechiporenko LA; Int. J. Hydrogen Energy 19 (1994) 739. "Activation of solid-phase deflagration of hydrogen-containing energy-storing substances". ** The authors do not believe in fractofusion in conductors, pointing to the lack of convincing results. In certain nonconducting substances containing hydrogen (isotopes), however, there may be 'deflagration' effects that just might lead to fusion. The authors here examine ND4NO3 and ND4ClO4, both of which can store energy and release it in deflagration events within the solid matrix when irradiated by gamma rays. Such events might enable d-d fusion. Experiments lend some support to this idea. Sep-93/? ------------------------- Batalla E, Zwartz EG, Judd BA; Solid State Commun. 71 (1989) 805. "In-situ X-ray diffraction of palladium cathodes in electrolytic cells". ** Question: can high current densities during electrolysis of D2O at Pd lead to higher than normal charging (x in PdD(x)), and thus cause deuterons to occupy tetrahedral crystal sites, giving tighter packing? In normal beta-phase PdD(x), d-d distances are 2.8 A, but in tetrahedral packing, this would be reduced to 2.2. X-ray diffraction during charging with H and D, showed the change from the low-H alpha-phase to the high-H beta-phase but none beyond that, so the answer is no tetrahedral packing. In fact, this is more or less irrelevant, since even 2.2 A is a lot more than e.g. 0.74 A, the d-d distance in D2 gas, which is not enough, either, to allow fusion. (25-) May-89/Nov-89 ------------------------- Baurichter A, Eyrich W, Frank M, Goehr H, Kreische W, Ortner H, Roeseler B, Schiller C-A, Weeske G, Witthun W; Z. Phys. B: Condens. Matter 76 (1989) 1. "Search for cold fusion in palladium". ** Neutron and gamma spectroscopy found nothing but background; reserve judgement. (28-) Apr-89/Jul-89 ------------------------- Bazhutov YuN, Vereshkov GM, Kuz'min RN, Frolov AM; Fiz. Plazmy Nekotor. Vopr. Obshch. Fiz. M. (1990) 67 (in Russian). "Interpretation of cold nuclear fusion by means of erzion catalysis". ** Muons are known to catalyse cold fusion, and could, in principle, be the cause of cold fusion, since they arrive at the Earth's surface in cosmic showers. However, their short life time precludes this possibility, at least at the claimed observation levels. But what if there were another, heavy and negative particle with much longer life, in these cosmic showers? The authors call these hypothetical particles "erzions", and postulate that they may have been accumulating in the Earth's surface for a long time. Erzion catalysis proceeeds just like muon catalysis, and if erzions are long lived, cold fusion is explained, along with some other physical mysteries such as "Lebed-X3" energy. The result would be (4)He, thus accounting for the dearth of neutrons; some would however be emitted as secondaries. ------------------------- Becker EW; Naturwiss. 76 (1989) 214. "Triple collision reaction of deuterons as a possible explanation of cold nuclear fusion". ** Tries to find a suitable radiationless nuclear reaction to conform with FPH's results. Suggests that clusters of (D3e2)+ ---> Li(6)*, which then decays to He(4) + D or something. The heavy product particles also would conserve momentum, which is not the case for other plausible reactions. (18-) Apr-89/May-89 ------------------------- Behrisch R, Moeller W, Roth J, Scherzer BMU; Nucl. Fusion 29 (1989) 1187. "Search for fusion reactions between deuterium atoms implanted into titanium". ** Deuterium was implanted into Ti foil at room temperature, 55 micrograms of D3+ was implanted and produced a layer of TiD2, 8 microns thick. A large- area proton detector was placed just next to this for 30 h, and detected only the normal background. (19-) Apr-89/Jul-89 ------------------------- Behrisch R; Ber. Bunsenges. Phys. Chem. 96 (1992) 733 (in German). "Comment on: H. Gentsch, DD-fusion reactions at a PdAg(D) target in a minireactor, Ber. Bunsenges, Phys. Chem. 95, 1283 (1991)". ** A polemic. Gentsch had a hollow tube as the cathode in a cold fusion electrolysis, with a near vacuum inside, into which he aimed a deuteron beam and got more neutrons and tritium than expected. Behrisch writes here that Gentsch is wrong, that the results are explained by self targeting without invoking anomalous effects. See Gentsch's answer, ibid p.734. Dec-91/May-92 ------------------------- Belov AS, Kusik VE, Ryabov YuV; Il Nuovo Cimento A103 (1990) 1647. "The nuclear fusion for the reactions (2)H(d,n)(3)He,(2)H(d,gamma)(4)He at low deuterons energy and 'cold' nuclear fusion". ** First, the team shoots a deuteron beam at a range of energies at a PdDx target, measuring the neutrons emitted as a result. These agree with (much) earlier work. Even at the lowest energies - which might approach cold fusion conditions - no anomalies were found. Subsequent neutron emission measurements made with the beam turned off set the upper limit for cold fusion at 7E-24 fusions/pair/s. The authors conclude that cold fusion, if it happens at all, has an unmeasurably low intensity and there is no basis for assuming any anomalies such as in branching ratios. Jul-90/Nov-90 ------------------------- Beltyukov IL, Bondarenko NB, Janelidze AA, Gapanov MYu, Gribanov KG, Kondratov SV, Maltsev AG, Novikov PI, Tsvetkov SA, Zakharov VI; Fusion Technol. 20 (1991) 234. "Laser-induced cold nuclear fusion in Ti-H2-D2-T2 compositions". ** In the search for the right nonequilibrium conditions, considered by many to be required for cold fusion, this team tried laser heating to effect phase transitions across the beta/(beta+gamma) and (beta+gamma)/gamma boundaries. Ti rods were used, prehydrided and flushed in vacuum; the rods were recharged by the respective gas at around 773-823K under various pressures. Two neutron and two gamma counters were nearby and thermocouples mounted within the rod to record the axial temperature gradients. It was found that neutron and gamma emissions coincided with phase transitions in the Ti-D system (presumably the transitions were known from the temperatures and reference to phase diagrams). After the experiment, the Ti showed a wide net of cracks. Despite the title, no Ti-H or Ti-T systems are reported but there is a control of Ti in air, with no emissions detected. Sep-90/Sep-91 ------------------------- Belzner A, Bischler U, Crouch-Baker S, Guer TM, Lucier G, Schreiber M, Huggins RA; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 219. "Two fast mixed-conductor systems: deuterium and hydrogen in palladium - thermal measurements and experimental considerations". ** The well known "Huggins" paper, presented at a conference in 1989. This team used an isoperibolic calorimeter to look for excess heat in PdHx and PdDx, respectively. In this type of calorimeter, the cell temperature does not rise very much, so temperature effects and nonlinearities do not appear. The authors measure the power put into a working cell and compare it with the power given off by it. They do not correct for the energy required for the electrolysis of water, so that if any excess heat is found, it must be real; recombination of evolved hydrogen (isotope) with oxygen is of no consequence with this most severe of all definitions of excess heat. The results are presented in the form of plots of power-out vs power-in. For a calibration, using electrical heating, this is a straight line with unity slope. The plot for the Pd-H system (light water) lies below this line, showing that some power is absorbed by the electrolysis. For Pd-D, this is also seen initially, during the charging phase; after 66 h electrolysis, when the Pd is presumably fully charged (given the diffusion coefficient of D in PdD of 2E-11, charging can be expected to reach into the sample to a depth of 2 mm and the Pd was 3-4 mm thick), the plot lies clearly above the calibration line, showing an excess heat of about 10%. A time effect is also shown: the out/in ratio goes smoothly from below 1 to above, for two cells. The excess heat is comparable with the deficit for Pd-H or for Pd-D initially. So, unless one postulates an exothermic reaction taking place (e.g. between impurities in the Pd and deuterium but not hydrogen) at a scale comparable with the power absorbed by water electrolysis, these results appear to provide strong evidence for a non-chemical source of excess heat in the Pd-D system. ?/Jun-90 ------------------------- Belzner A, Bischler U, Crouch-Baker S, Guer TM, Lucier G, Schreiber M, Huggins RA; Solid State Ionics 40/41 (1990) 519. "Recent results on mixed conductors containing hydrogen or deuterium". ** Essentially the same results (and text) as in the authors' paper in the J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 219. ?/Aug-90 ------------------------- Benedek G, Bortignon PF; Nuovo Cimento Soc. Ital. Fis., D 11 (1989) 1227. "Cold nuclear fusion: viewpoints of solid-state physics". ** Discussion of some of the possible electronic mechanisms that may explain CNF. As usual, localised electron screening is invoked but is not found sufficient - the d-d distance is still too large. The authors admit that dielectric arguments should not apply at such small scales but then say that they might, anyway. Lastly, they speculate that of a cluster of deuterons, if one were missing, this would amount to a negative hole with a large mass, which could be a sufficient coulombic screen. Jun-89/Aug-89 ------------------------- Benesh CJ, Vary JP; Phys. Rev. C: Nucl. Phys. 40 (1989) R495. "Fusion rates of squeezed and screened hydrogenic nuclei". ** Theory; calculated the barrier penetration factor for H-like ions confined in a potential well as a function of the equilibrium separation and screening length of the medium. There was no agreement with reported high fusion rates; deuterons would have get much closer than is plausible. (26-) Apr-89/Aug-89 ------------------------- Benetskii BA, Klyachko AV, Rozantsev AI; Kratk. Soobshch. Fiz. 1989(6) 58. (In Russian). Translated in: Sov. Phys. - Lebedev Inst. Rep. (6)(1989) 75. "An attempt to observe cold thermonuclear fusion in a condensed medium". ** A 200 mm long Pd tube of 2.5 mm diameter and wall thickness 0.1 mm was sealed at one end and D2 gas at 12-14 atm applied to the other, while the tube was electrically heated to 300-400 deg. A total of 10**23 D atoms passed through the tube wall in the course of the experiment. A scintillation counter using stilbene detected the neutrons. None were observed. (4-)May-89/? ------------------------- Bennington SM, Sokhi RS, Stonadge PR, Ross DK, Benham MJ, Beynon TD, Whithey P, Harris IR, Farr JPG; Electrochim. Acta 34 (1989) 1323. "A search for the emission of x-rays from electrolytically charged palladium-deuterium". ** State that x-rays should be produced by high-energy charged particles slowing down in condensed matter. They found none. ?/Sep-89 ------------------------- Bennington SM, Benham MJ, Stonadge PR, Fairclough JPA, Ross DK; J. Electroanal. Chem. 281 (1990) 323. "In-situ measurements of deuterium uptake into a palladium electrode using time-of-flight neutron diffractometry". ** Like x-ray diffraction, neutron diffraction can analyse the structure and composition of materials like PdD(x) but with the advantage that neutrons can penetrate more deeply into the bulk; x-rays can only do near-surface measure- ments. So with neutrons, the authors were able to measure the x in PdD(x). This has now been attempted by several methods such as accounting for evolved gas, by gravimetry, by resistance measurements and others. Loadings (x) of up to 2 have been claimed, whereas 0.8 or so is assumed normal. The present paper reports a maximum of 0.78, in line with expectations. Jan-90/Mar-90 ------------------------- Berkem AR; Kim. Sanayi 31 (1989) 7 (in Turkish). Cited in Chem. Abstr. 111:181115 (1989). "Nuclear fusion. Hot fusion - cold fusion". ** A review with no references. ------------------------- Bernabei R, Gannelli G, Cantelli R, Cordero, d'Angelo S, Iucci N, Picozza PG, Villoresi G; Solid State Commun. 76 (1990) 815. "Neutron monitoring during evolution of deuteride precipitation in Nb, Ta and Ti". ** The formation of the highly loaded metal deuteride beta phase is here called precipitation (why not?), and this team monitored neutron emissions during such precipitation, as well as during deformation and crack nucleation. The "D-doping" was done under D2 gas (99.96% pure) at 400 and 550 degC for 1-2 h and loadings of 0.07 to 0.43 were achieved. There was temperature cycling. Crack formation was observed upon precipitation. No neutrons were found under any conditions. Mar-90/Nov-90 ------------------------- Bertalot L, De Marco F, De Ninno A, La Barbera A, Scaramuzzi F, Violante V, Zeppa P; Nuovo Cimento 15 D (1993) 1435. "Study of deuterium charging in palladium by the electrolysis of heavy water: heat excess production". ** One of the few things known from all previous excess heat observations is that the D/Pd ratio must be > 0.8. Here, an electrolysis experiment with calorimetry is reported, and was successful; further, some correlations were demonstrated. Special features of the experiment were: high current densities (cd) (hundreds of mA/cm^2); forcing of high D/Pd by using an alternating high/low cd with a semiperiod of 6 h; using a cathode whose other side faced a pressure chamber where extra hydrogen/deuterium gas could be introduced; using Pd as anode as well, thereby causing continuous dissolution of Pd from the anode and deposition of Pd on the cathode and thus preventing poisoning, which might prevent a high D/Pd ratio. A constant flow calorimeter was used, with no recombination of evolved gases. A flow meter was used to ensure that the gas evolved checked with the charge passed through the cell. Excess power was found, uncorrelated with current density, at 3W and lasting about 20 h, for a high input of 3 W alternating with a low input of 0.3 W. Shorter periods of high/low alternation are favourable; overpotential was clearly an important factor, as was the flow of deuterium gas into the back of the cathode. A follow-up paper (ADN and VV) is on the way, interpreting these results in terms of matter waves of deuterium through Pd. Aug-93/Nov-93 ------------------------- Bertin A, Bruschi M, Capponi M, De Castro S, Marconi U, Moroni C, Piccinini M, Semprini-Cesari N, Trombini A, Vitale A, Zoccoli A, Jones SE, Czirr JB, Jensen GL, Palmer EP; Nuovo Cimento Soc. Ital. Fis. A 101A (1989) 997. "Experimental evidence of cold nuclear fusion in a measurement under the Gran Sasso Massif". ** A repeat of Jones+'s experiment but under the Grand Sasso massiv, under low-cosmic background conditions, using two simultaneous neutron detectors: one to measure at the cell, the other, at some distance away, to monitor the background; both being proton-recoil liquid scintillators which enable the workers to distinguish neutrons from gamma radiation. When gamma radiation is not excluded, no significant neutron signals are obtained; gamma discrimination, however, does produce some neutron emission, with a peak at the 2.5 MeV expected from the d+d-->(3)He+n reaction. After some corrections, the neutron flux is comparable with that detected by Jones+. The experiment thus confirms the Jones+ result, suggests that the electrochemical charging of Ti with D plays a role in this, and suggests that discrimination against gamma radiation is useful. (29-) Apr-89/Jun-89 ------------------------- Bertin A, Bruschi M, Capponi M, De Castro S, Marconi U, Moroni C, Piccinini M, Semprini-Cesari N, Trombini A, Vitale A, Zoccoli A, Czirr JB, Jensen GL, Jones SE, Palmer EP; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 209. "First experimental results at the Gran Sasso Laboratory on cold nuclear fusion in titanium electrodes". ** This reports preliminary results of neutron measurements from electrolytic infusion of deuterium into Ti. The measurements were undertaken under low- background conditions. The same electrolyte mixture as used by Jones+(89) was used, and the same type of Ti electrodes. The laboratory inside the Gran Sasso massif has an overall radioactivity level 1/10 that elsewhere, and practically no cosmic radiation gets in, except neutrinos. One neutron detector (a NE-213 type) was set next to the cell, another 8m away. Neutron-gamma separation was possible by pulse shape discrimination and confirmed by calibration. The results show a definite difference between the two counters, with a calculated 875+-180 neutrons/hour emitted from the cold fusion cell. Taking account of some experimental differences, this compares well with the results of Jones+(89), thus confirming low-level cold fusion. ?/Jun-90 ------------------------- Besenbacher F, Bech Nielsen B, Noerskov JK, Myers SM, Nordlander P; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 257. "Interaction of hydrogen isotopes with metals: deuterium trapped at lattice defects in palladium". ** A fundamental study, both theoretical and experimental, of the interaction of hydrogen isotopes with defects in metals. Ion implantation is used for the experiments. For the theory, the inhomogeneous metal is modelled as a simpler host, the "effective medium", giving the name to the theory (dating back some years). In short, defects act as a trap for hydrogen. There is good absolute agreement between theory and experiment, with respect to trap strength of some metals looked at. Up to 6 hydrogens can be trapped at a single open defect; the distance between them is, however, no less than 1.85 A, far too great to allow fusion. ?/Sep-90 ------------------------- Besenbacher F, Bech Nielsen B, Hornshoej, Laesgaard E, Rud N; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 315. "Search for cold fusion in plasma-charged Pd-D and Ti-D systems". ** Although the effective-medium theory (see other papers from this group) says that cold fusion should not occur, the team nevertheless tried it out. Nonequilibrium has been said to be the secret; one more way to ensure this is to charge the metal with deuterium from a plasma, obtained by means of a DC glow discharge in a low-pressure deuterium gas between two Cu electrodes. The cathode was the test metal (Pd or Ti) covered with a thin layer (50 A) of Cu, which trapped the D in the metal. The D impinges at 200-400 eV, and loses about 100 eV to the Cu barrier, not leaving enough energy for self targetting neutron emission. Any neutrons measured would thus have to come from fusion. Neutron detection was by means of an NE-213 liquid scintillator coupled to a fast photomultiplier tube, with pulse shape gamma discrimination, and an efficiency of about 3% at the sample. Measurements continued for 2 weeks. Loading of the top layer of the Pd was determined by surface nuclear reaction analysis and found to be about 0.8. The upper limit for cold fusion, calculated from the neutron flux, was <= 5E-24 fus/pair/s, or well below claimed rates. Thus cold fusion is not found. ?/Sep-90 ------------------------- Bhattacharjee JK, Satpathy L, Waghmare YR; Pramana 32 (1989) L841. Cited in Chem. Abstr. 111:241580 (1989). "A possible mechanism of cold fusion". ** Again invokes shielding of two deuterons from each other by an electron with enhanced effective mass. ?/Jun-89 ------------------------- Birgul O, Celebi S, Ozdural A, Pekmez K, Yildiz A, Yurum Y (umlauts missing); Doga- Turk. J. Eng. Env. Sci. 14(3) (1990) 373. "Electrochemically induced fusion of deuterium using surface modified palladium electrodes". ** Bursts of gamma-ray emission accompanying sudden temp. rises were obsd. during the const. current electrolysis of D2O contg. LiOD electrolyte using the surface modified Pd cathodes following the charge-up of the cathode material with the electrolytically produced D. Macroscopic and microscopic deformations of the cathode material were noted at the end of electrolysis that could only be caused by extreme pos. thermal changes. The results were compared with blank expts. using H2O in which no such changes occurred. The nature of surface modification is not specified. The authors speculate that fusion is initiated by microscopic rises in temperature and collapse from the beta to alpha phase, by either recombination of deuterons into D2, or reaction of deposited Li with D2O. The surface modification will be described elsewhere. Jul-89/? ------------------------- Bittner M, Ludwig G, Meister A, Mueller J, Ohms D, Paffrath E, Rahner D, Schwierz R, Seeliger D, Stiehl P, Wiesener K, Wuestner P; Fusion Technol. 19 (1991) 2119. "Evidence for the production of d-d fusion neutrons during electrolytic infusion of deuterons into a palladium cylinder". ** This team has previously described their method, without many results, and also has a theory (same journal, p.2114). Here, they report their experimental results. Electrolysis at their chunky Pd cathode (32.1 mm diameter, 19.3 mm long) was kept up for 606 h, at 4A (i.e. ca. 0.5/cm**2) in 3M LiOD and D2O. The electrolyte was topped up regularly, and the temperature and cell voltage measured. The cell was periodically removed from the neutron detectors for one hour, so that there was a total of 110 hours of neutron measurements and 116 hours of background measurement. Weighing after the experiment showed that a D/Pd loading of 0.801 had been achieved. During the first 220 h, effect and background are the same, then the effect increases to up to 4 sigma above background, and decreases again later, confirming these authors' theory on that count, for a loading time constant of 350 h. Aug-90/Jul-91 ------------------------- Bittner M, Meister A, Ohms D, Paffrath E, Rahner D, Schwierz R, Seeliger D, Wiesener K, Wuestner P; Fusion Technol. 18 (1990) 120. "Method for investigation of fusion reactions in condensed matter". ** The authors present a sophisticated statistical analysis of neutron measurements made close to electrolysis cells in which palladium was the cathode in electrolytes with heavy and light water, and with current switched on and off. At one-hour intervals, the cell was taken far away from the detector, and this was repeated over many hours. The small differences between background and measurement were enhanced by integrating the total hourly neutron count differences (background total minus cell total) over time. Some cells showed a deficit, due to shadowing. The cell with electrolysis of D2O, however, did show a very small positive effect of about 3 counts/h. Other measurements rule out cosmic muon effects. No strong conclusions are drawn, the object here being to present the method. Feb-90/Aug-90 ------------------------- Bittner M, Meister A, Ohms D, Paffrath E, Rahner D, Schwierz R, Seeliger D, Wiesener K, Wuestner P; Isotopenpraxis 27 (1991) 274. "Emission of DD-fusion neutrons from a massive palladium cyclinder during electrolytic infusion of deuterons into the metal". ** A 92 g cyclinder of Pd, 22.6 mm dia and 20.2 mm length, was electrolysed for over 700 h at a current of 4A in 3M LiOD in D2O, while periodically monitoring the neutron flux, alternating with the background, as previously described. Post-mortem weighing indicated a D/Pd loading of 0.812. Some positive results were obtained; as before, there was a maximum neutron emission at about one charging time constant, i.e. below maximum saturation. The maximum neutron emission rate is 160 n/h, which I translate into about 1E-26 fus/pair/s; the authors make that 1E-44/s/cm**3. The introduction says that there will be a comparison with an H2O electrolysis but this is not found in the paper. Jan-91/? ------------------------- Bittner M, Meister A, Ohms D, Paffrath E, Rahner D, Schwierz R, Seeliger D, Wiesener K, Wuestner P; Fusion Technol. 20 (1991) 334. "Indication for the temporary production of deuteron-deuteron fusion neutrons during electrolytic infusion of deuterons into a massive palladium slab". ** The team from Dresden continues with its cnf experiments, and here reports the use of a slab, initially 50*40*7 mm**3, loaded by a 8A current in 3M LiOD. The authors subscribe to a dense plasma model of cold fusion, and predict (and have shown) a maximum fusion rate at intermediate D loadings, in contrast to most other workers. A maximum loading of 0.615 was reached over 900 h of electrolysis in all. There were some weak but significant neutron emissions but not as definite as the team's previous reports with other cathodes. The upper limit was set at 1E-26 fusions/pair/s for fully loaded Pd. Feb-91/Nov-91 ------------------------- Bittner M, Meister A, Seeliger D, Schwierz R, Wuestner P; Fusion Technol. 23 (1993) 346. "Observation of d-d fusion neutrons during degassing of deuterium-loaded palladium". ** High temperature degassing Pd charged with deuterium is expected to allow a higher fusion rate than during electrolytic charging, because of the higher deuteron mobility, and the greater concentration of deuterium in the interstitial plasma, as well as higher deuterium energy. Also, the experiment is shorter. Here, 2.45 MeV neutrons from the 3He branch were searched for. Two massive chunky Pd cylinders, respectively 86 and 518 g mass, were electrolytically charged, and then degassed on a heating plate, with temperatures at the plate and top of the samples 375 C and 205 C, resp. and duration of degassing (and neutron monitoring) about 10 minutes per run. A total of 18 runs (large sample) and 11 runs (small sample) were run, in air, for a single deuterium charge. There was heat shielding between the samples and the neutron detector, which was NE-213 liquid scintillators coupled to photomultipliers, detecting recoil protons. Gamma events were suppressed to 2-5*10^-4. Results show significant neutron emission in the 1.9-3.3 MeV slot, but none in the 3.3-5.2 MeV slot. The emissions decayed to background as the samples lost deuterium after about 50-100 min, i.e. neutron emission correlated with deuterium content of the samples. The calculated maximum fusion rate was about 3*10^-25 fus/d-d pair/s. Jul-91/May-93 ------------------------- Blagus S, Bogovac M, Drasner A, Vukovic M; Fusion Technol. 26 (1994) 105. "Evidence for neutron production during heavy water electrolysis on palladium electrode". ** An attempt to reproduce the results of Gozzi et al. A Pd cyclinder was made by pressing 99.95% pure Pd powder at 216 MPa and sintering at 1173 K for 12 H. The final mass of the pellet was 8.2 g at a density of 80% that of solid Pd. An undivided cell was used, filled with 0.2M D2SO4 in D2O, kept at 298 K; current density was 0.2 A/cm^2. Neutrons were monitored with a single 6Li-glass scintillation counter with appropriate electronics for pulse height discrimination etc. Over a period of about 10 days, 12 runs were recorded with an overall duration of 677660 s. All recordings were indistinguishable from those for the background, except in one run, where two neutron bursts were seen, with durations of 200 and 100 s, counting, resp., 193 and 63 neutrons or 256 total in 300 s. Postmortem analysis of the cathode indicated a D/Pd loading of 0.7. The team noted the exact times of x-ray bursts from the Sun (there is a table of such events) and the neutron bursts are not correlated with these. Neutron emissions were about 1/10 of Gozzi et al. Mar-93/Aug-94 ------------------------- Blagus S, Bogovac M, Hodko D, Krcmar M, Miljanic D, Tomas P, Vajic M, Vukovic M; Z. Phys. A: At. Nucl. 333 (1989) 321. "Search for neutron production during heavy water electrolysis on palladium electrodes" ** Found that the upper limit on neutron production is 10**-5 * FPH, and also less than Jones+'s results. Scintillation detectors were used, regularly calibrated and checked for stability. There was an apparent neutron peak in the expected region; however, this was present also when the electrolysis was turned off and the Pd electrode taken out. Long-time difference spectra showed only background noise. After electrolysis, x-ray fluorescence showed that Pt had been deposited on the Pd. (24-) May-89/Jul-89 ------------------------- Blaser JP, Haas O, Ptitjean C, Barbero C, Bertl W, Lou K, Mathias M, Baumann P, Daniel H, Hartmann J, Hechtl E, Ackerbauer P, Kammel P, Scrinzi A, Zmeskal H, Kozlowski T, Kipfer R, Baur H, Signer P, Wieler R; Chimia 43 (1989) 262. "Experimental investigation of cold fusion phenomena in palladium". ** A team from 5 different institutes in Germany, Austria and Switzerland carried out electrolysis and calorimetry of D2O and H2O, using closed cells, while monitoring for neutrons (single detector), gamma radiation, tritium and helium (these by mass spec). During two months, no excess heat was found, no neutrons or gammas; tritium was not possible to separate from enrichment effects; mass spec sensitivity for (4)He is not sufficient while the high sensitivity for (3)He was of no avail, as all such counts could be almost precisely accounted for by tritium entering the Pd. Surface analysis showed a monolayer on the Pd of Zn, Pb and Hg but these did not prevent hydrogen/deuterium from entering the Pd: a loading of 0.85-0.95 was achieved in both cases. Sep-89/Sep-89 ------------------------- Blencoe JG, Naney MT, Wesolowski DJ, Perey FG; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 149. "Tests for 'cold fusion' in the Pd-D2 and Ti-D2 systems at 40-380 MPa and -196-27 degC". ** This team decided to try to load Pd with D2 gas; while this was in progress, they heard about the Frascatti experiments with Ti and added this to the experiment. The Pd-D2 system was monitored for heat effects, as well as for neutrons. A triple BF3 neutron detector was used. Results: "no sustained neutron flux" over a long period of pressurisation, depressurisation and temperature cycling for the Pd-D2 system, and temperature changes due only to PV work and deuteride formation. The single Ti-D2 experiment gave an increase in the neutron level over a period of 5 hours at 80 hours. This corresponds to about 1000 n/s, comparable with Jones et al or Menlove et al, but the authors warn that they cannot be sure that their detector was bahaving properly. They plan more experiments to confirm/deny this result. ?/Jun-90 ------------------------- Bockris JO'M, Chien C-C, Hodko D, Minevski Z; Int. J. Hydrogen Energy 17 (1992) 445. "Cold fusion as a consequence of high fugacity among hydrogen isotopes". ** Bockris et al here argue for the high-fugacity theory of cold fusion. In the original FPH paper, FPH calculated, from the overpotential, an equivalent "pressure" of 1E26 atm. This is supported here, although called fugacity. The authors refer to 1967 work of Landau and Lifshits, which says that a pressure exceeding 1E17 atm might cause electron capture by deuterium nuclei and thus loss of charge. There is some qualitative argument for equating fugacity with pressure, away from walls. The steep fugacity rise at pressures of around 1E04 atm is still mentioned. ------------------------- Bockris JO'M, Lin GH, Packham NJC; Fusion Technol. 18 (1990) 11. "A review of the investigations of the Fleischmann-Pons phenomena". ** A review, with 61 references, of cold fusion, a little selective in parts. Many of the references are to conferences and "private communication", and thus not quite so accessible. The major experiments are reported, and a discussion given on each of excess heat, tritium, neutrons, protons, mass spectrometry, cluster impact fusion. The various theories that have been proposed are explained rather well. These include growing cracks (but there is no mention of the Soviet work), muon catalysis, Coulombic screening, tunnelling, chain reactions, quantum electrodynamic, and the formation of dendrites on the cathode surface; this last theory is the authors', and would explain the long electrolysis time required before anything happens, the sporadicity and irreprodubility of the phenomenon, and even the alleged anomalous branching ratio. Tritium, the authors say, should be the easiest of all fusion products to detect; neutrons are difficult; FPH's calorimetry is beyond reproach. Mar-90/Aug-90 ------------------------- Bockris JO'M; Fusion Technol. 18 (1990) 523. "Addition to 'A review of the investigations of the Fleischmann-Pons phenomena'". ** Since the printing of the review, more evidence has come to light. Bockris says that Kevin Wolf's tritium could not have been in the palladium beforehand and even if it was, it would have been driven out during electrolysis. So the results of Bockris' school, and those of Wolf himself, are not in doubt. ?/Nov-90 ------------------------- Bockris J, Hodko D; Chem. & Ind. 22 (1990) 689. "Is there evidence for cold fusion?" ** A summary of the case for cold fusion, which is a clear "yes" for the authors. In particular, they emphasise the burst-like nature of cold fusion, and say that there have been observations of correlated events like tritium with heat or neutrons or gammas. 77 references are given, many of them of conference talks, reports, and private communications. ?/Nov-90 ------------------------- Bosch H-S, Wurden GA, Gernhardt J, Karger F, Perchermeier J; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 165. "Electrochemical cold fusion trials at IPP Garching". ** The "Bavarian Bubble Bottle Team" reports, in a refreshingly informal and candid manner, their extensive experiments, starting as soon as they heard of FPH's press conference. Lacking all technical details, they nevertheless happened to hit on more or less the same set-up as FPH. Their neutron detectors were not up to Jones+ levels but sufficiently sensitive for FPH levels, as was their calorimetry, at an accuracy of about 5%. Three electrolysis cells showed no signs of neutrons, tritium, gamma emissions or excess heat above backgrounds. One large electrode, intended to verify the FPH melt-down (it didn't) was thrown into liquid nitrogen after 21 h charging, and allowed to warm up; this, to emulate Italian experiments. Again, no emissions. The deuterium loading was estimated (with some corrections) at 0.9-1.2. The team comments that the thermodynamics of palladium hydride differs from that of the deuteride, and that this could well account for the claims by Huggins (at that time not published), given his conditions of nonequilibrium; i.e. if the loading is changing, then the two hydrogen isotopes behave differently in a thermodynamic sense. They also point out (as Frank Close has done) that no matter what nuclear reaction one postulates, one must expect some kind of radiation; the cooperative, Moessbauer-type effect suggested by some, absorbing such emissions as heat, is highly unlikely. ?/Jun-90 ------------------------- Botta E, Bressani T, Calvo D, Feliciello A, Gianotti P, Lamberti C, Agnello M, Iazzi F, Minetti B, Zecchina A; Il Nuovo Cimento 105A (1992) 1663. "Measurement of 2.5 MeV neutron emission from Ti/D and Pd/D systems". ** Report of an improved series of experiments, using both Ti and Pd, loaded with deuterium from the gas phase. Blanks with hydrogen were also run. With both metals, thousands of minutes worth of neutron measurements were taken. Background measurements were also taken. The detector was a time-of-flight neutron spectrometer, two blocks of plastic scintillators. The authors point out that the Ti, covered as it is with oxide, does not absorb D2 or H2 unless heat treated, which they did. Temperature-time curves showed phase transitions for low-loaded Ti (x=0.7), but not for highly loaded Ti (1.8). Both metals, initially in the form of sponge (Ti) or small pellets, broke down. Subtraction of the average background in two slightly different ways clearly showed an excess of neutrons at around 2.5 MeV with the metal deuterides at about 4-5 sigma (Ti) and 2 sigma (Pd) but not with the hydrides. The neutron flux was about 1/10 of that found by this team previously, at (Ti) 0.1 n/s/g, and (Pd) 0.02 n/s/g. No bursts were found. Apr-92/Nov-92 ------------------------- Botter F, Bouchez J, Collot J, Kajfasz E, Lefievre B, Lesquoy E, Stutz A, Tistchenko S, Zylberajch S; Phys. Lett. B 232 (1989) 536. "Search for emission of neutrons from a palladium-deuterium system". ** Palladium black was used here, to facilitate absorption of H or D. The Pd was put into a stainless tube and exposed to H2 or D2 gas under various pressures. At various stages: during absorption of H or D; during desorption; static conditions with gas at 1 or 3 bar, and passing through phase changes as a result of H or D absorption; temperature and neutron flux were measured. Out of 25 cycles of 197 hours each, runs with D2 emitted 29 neutrons, runs with H2 18. These levels are several orders of magnitude below the results of De Ninno et al, with Ti. Aug-89/Dec-89 ------------------------- Boucher GR, Collins FE, Matlock RL; Fusion Technol. 24 (1993) 200. "Separation factors for hydrogen isotopes on palladium" ** It is well known that there is hydrogen isotope separation during the electrolysis of water. Until now, there has only been indirect evidence for the separation factor for tritium enrichment due to this effect, in heavy water electrolysis. Here, an experiment is reported where this factor, calculated from that for h/d and h/t separation (about 2) is used to predict tritium concentration in a cell containing heavy water and 0.1M LiOD, and to compare this with measured tritium. The measured points fall on the predicted line. The line showed an "event", i.e. a sudden increase in tritium on day 21, but this was due to a greater tritium background in a replenisher. The cell had a Pd cathode, Pt anode and a recombiner. Jul-92/Sep-93 ------------------------- Boya LJ; An. Fis. B86 (1990) 221. "Possible mechanisms for cold fusion in deuterated palladium". ** Some speculation about cold fusion in the Pd lattice. The stationary state is first discussed. Deuterium is thought to be present as the neutral D most of the time, and as d (i.e. deuterons, D+) only a small part of the time; and to be colliding frequently ("because of the repulsive and big Pd ions"). However, this will not favour their fusion. Possible mechanisms should therefore be looked for in some non-stationary condition, such as the passing of a current, or an attractive d-d force in the alpha phase, or lattice interaction such as overlapping pseudolocalised Bloch waves; or lattice vibrations; or hysteresis in the alpha/beta transition region. Suggestions are made for experiments to throw light on the puzzle: the use of ac current to enhance the current effect, and heating and cooling to exploit the hysteresis effect. Sep-89/? ------------------------- Bracci L, Fiorentini G, Mezzorani G; J. Phys. G 16 (1990) 83. "Nuclear fusion in molecular systems". ** Theoretical calculation of the fusion rate of pairs xx', where x and x' can be p, d or t, for a range of internuclear distances and effective masses of the binding particle (electron). A model thought to be more accurate than the naive Gamow-Sommerfeld formula is used. In some cases, high pressures might lead to an internuclear distance sufficiently smaller than normal, to increase fusion rates by tens of orders of magnitude, even at normal electron mass. Collective effects on the fusion process are ruled out, however, because they operate at inter-atomic spacings, not the small internuclear distances. The table of results shows that claimed cold fusion rates are possible with effective electron masses of 5-10 for all xx'. Jun-89/Jan-90 ------------------------- Bressani T, Calvo D, Feliciello A, Lamberti C, Iazzi F, Minetti B, Cherubini R, Haque AMI, Ricci RA; Il Nuovo Cimento Soc. Ital. Fiz. 104A (1991) 1413. "Observation of 2.5 MeV neutrons emitted from a titanium-deuterium system". ** This team recognised the difficulties of low-level neutron measurement and started, some time ago, to design a suitable detector system. They chose a time-of-flight system, together with a scattering trick which, although lowering the sensitivity to 3E-04, had the advantage of almost complete immunity to background. 3g of Ti shavings were pressurised under H2 or D2 at up to 2 atm at temperatures from 25-540 degC. The Ti was degassed for one day at 540 degC. During pressurising, the temp. was cycled up and down. At the high temps., all gas escaped the Ti, and was reabsorbed during the down cycle. During the downs with D2, small enhancement of the neutron spectrum around 2.45 MeV were observed; none with H2 gas. Signal averaging of up cycles and down cycles separately and subtracting these averages gave a much clearer 2.45 MeV peak than reported previously. The intensity amounts to about 13 n/s/g Ti, or a fusion rate of about 1E-21 fus/pair/s. Erratum: Bressani T, Calvo D, Feliciello A, Lamberti C, Iazzi F, Minetti B, Cherubini R, Haque AMI, Ricci RA; Il Nuovo Cimento Soc. Ital. Fis. 104A (1991) 1587. ERRATA: "Observation of 2.5 MeV neutrons emitted froma titanium-deuterium system". In the paper referred to here, same journal 104A (1991) 1413, some of the corrections requested by the authors were not carried out in the final version. On p.1417, line 19, there should appear (4.0 +- 1.5) n/s, and in the following row, (1.3 +- 0.5) n/s/g. (Original dates) Aug-91/Sep-91 ------------------------- Bressani T, Del Giudice E, Preparata G; Nuovo Cimento Soc. Ital Fis. A 101 (1989) 845. "First steps toward an understanding of 'cold' nuclear fusion" ** Theoretical. Takes as a fact that cold fusion takes place, and tries to find an explanation of it, in terms of lattice effects in Ti and Pd, and why cold fusion might differ from fusion in vacuum. The authors have, for some years, been considering collective interactions in the solid state, through the quantised electromagnetic field, and claim some success in other areas, such as lasers and high-T superconductors. They find that coherent oscillation of electrons around deuterons can indeed enhance fusion rates by 50-60 orders of magnitude and, what is more, that the particular fusion reaction is not expected to be that occurring in vacuum but solely that leading to (4)He plus energy, accounting for FPH's heat-without-neutrons; it can also accommodate the Jones+ results. Lastly, the authors suggest that the reaction p+d will also be enhanced. (26-) Apr-89/May-89 ------------------------- Briand JP, Dewynck J, Chevallier P, Bobin JL; Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res., Sect. A A285 (1989) 547. "Cold fusion: an alternative diagnostic". ** A new diagnostic for CNF in Pd targets, using the x-rays that would be emitted during the slowing down of p fusion products in the target, was carried out. This is fairly easy to measure. So far, negative results. Jul-89/Dec-89 ------------------------- Briand JP, Ban G, Froment M, Keddam M, Abel F; Phys. Lett. A145 (1990) 187. "Cold fusion rates in titanium foils". ** In a previous paper, this team had detected cold fusion by the x-rays produced when the neutrons hit metal atoms. They have now improved their technique, and use it on Ti instead of Pd (as previously). Background detector noise is now down by a factor of 100, efficiency up 3 times. Electrolysis was used, in soups containing Jones+-like metal ions. They conclude that even with properly pretreated Ti, the D does not penetrate more than 2-3 mu into the Ti, due to deposition of metals. So, on the one hand, Jones+ fusion rate should be revised by a couple of orders of magnitude, due to the much smaller volume. On the other hand, the present team finds next to nothing, even from Ti fully loaded by D2 gas, nor (a fracto-experiment) from loaded Ti cracked right in front of the detector. Dec-89/Apr-90 ------------------------- Bridge ME, Lloyd DR, Coey JMD; Nature (London) 340 (1989) 105. 13-Jul-89. Scientific correspondence. "Cold fusion ideas" (section editor's title). ** Points out that, due to the different resistivities of electrolytes in normal and heavy water, the substitution of normal water might produce different heats, without showing that CNF took place in heavy water. Also, mass spectrometers might be cheated into apparently giving evidence for tritium, while in fact, species such as D2H+ and D3+ might be giving the signals. ?/Jul-89 ------------------------- Brillas E, Esteve J, Sardin G, Casado J, Domenech X, Sanchez-Cabeza JA; Electrochim. Acta 37 (1992) 215. "Product analysis from D2O electrolysis with Pd and Ti cathodes". ** If there be fusion, there must be fusion products; this has been one of the weak points in the cold fusion saga. The Spanish team here looks specifically at the production of tritium and deposition on and diffusion into the metal of lithium and platinum, both at Pd and Ti cathodes, as well as at Pt, as a control. The electrolyte is the usual 0.1M LiOD in pure D2O (and LiOH in H2O as control), as well as some D2O spiked with tritium to about three times the normal contamination level. The metals were high purity sheets and rods and current densities ranged from 5 to 300 mA/cm**2, for many days. The temperature was controlled to 25 degC. Tritium was assayed from aliquots taken from the electrolyte, and near-surface products were detected by SIMS spectra. No unexplained changes in tritium were found, i.e. none was produced by exotic reactions. Lithium was indeed deposited on all cathodes, up to a total content of 30 ppm in the Ti sheet. Much more Pt was deposited (up to 600 ppm). Mar-91/Feb-92 ------------------------- Britz D; Centaurus 33 (1990) 368. "Cold fusion: an historical parallel". ** The experiment of Wada and Nishizawa (1989) was preceded by a very similar one, almost 60 years previously. John Tandberg, the Swedish chemist electrically exploded a Pd wire electrolytically charged with deuterium, in order to provoke d-d fusion. The paper provides a translation of the Swedish description of this work, and discusses the parallel. Nov-90/Sep-91 ------------------------- Britz D; J. Radioanal. Nucl. Chem. Lett. 155 (1991) 377. "Parameter correlations in cold fusion measurements". ** Besides listing some of those few cold fusion experiments in which correlations between different measured parameters were found, the author looks closely at the paper of Birgul et al, which clearly shows some remarkably correlated gamma emissions and cell temperature; Birgul et al do not seem to make much of this. Britz calculates the cross correlation function and finds a peak of 0.34 at a lag of 16 min, i.e. the temperature tends to lead gamma emissions by 16 minutes on average. No explanation is offered. Aug-91/Dec-91 ------------------------- Broer MM, Feldman LC, James ACWP, Kraus JS, Raghavan RS; Phys. Rev. C: Nucl. Phys. 40 (1989) R1559. "Search for neutrons from deuterium-deuterium nuclear reactions in electrochemically charged Palladium". ** A four-week electrochemical experiment with Pd wire and rods, annealed under nitrogen at 900 degC for 1h, the rods cast from powder under argon and rolled. A single neutron detector was used and found a fusion rate < 1/5 of that of Jones+. Jun-89/Oct-89 ------------------------- Brudanin VB, Bystritskii VM, Egorov VG, Shamsutdinov SG, Shyshkin AL, Stolupin VA, Yutlandov IA; Phys. Lett. A 146 (1990) 347. "Does cold nuclear fusion exist?". ** Experimental attempt to verify cold fusion, by both electrolysis of D2O at Pd and D2-saturation of Pd, as well as electrolysis of D2-charged Pd. Pure D2O, as well as 50:50 D2O:H2O were used and currents from 1-125 mA/cm**2. The authors seem not to have used LiOD but note that "at high currents", sodium carbonate was added to raise conductivity. In the D2 gas experiments, a loading of 0.5 was achieved. Two SNM-14 boron-containing neutron detectors were used, calibrated at 0.32% efficiency; x-rays were also measured. Nothing was found above background levels. The authors comment on the use of Li salts: cosmic neutrons react with (6)Li to produce tritium, so Li should be avoided if tritium is to be detected. Jun-89/Jun-90 ------------------------- Brudanin VB, Bystritskii VM, Egorov VG, Shamsutdinov SG, Shyshkin AL, Stolupin VA, Yutlandov IA; Phys. Lett. A 146 (1990) 351. "Once more about cold nuclear fusion". ** To add to their other paper on p.347, the authors have tried experiments with Ti, again using electrolysis and D2 gas loading, as well as temperature cycling as in the Frascati trials. No neutrons were found. Jul-89/Jun-90 ------------------------- Brudanin VB, Bystritsky VM, Egorov VG, Stetsenko SG, Yutlandov IA; Phys. Lett. A151 (1990) 543. "Search for the cold fusion d(d,(4)He) in electrolysis of D2O". ** Previous work by this team did not confirm either FPH(89) or Jones+(89) claims. Nevertheless, the excess heat found by some needs to be explained. Here the possibility of the reaction d+d --> (4)He + lattice energy is investigated, by detection of alpha particles (i.e. He). Thin Pd (50 mu) and Ti (100 mu) foils are used as cathodes in 0.1M Na2CO3 in D2O, at current densities of 30 mA/cm**2 for about 100 h. Two CR-39 track detectors were placed directly under the cathode foils. Not a single track was recorded. In another experiment, a silicon surface barrier detector was used, again with no alphas detected. This set an upper limit for cold fusion at 1E-26 fus/pair/s. Thus, the exotic (4)He+heat branch is not the explanation for the excess heat observed by others, and precision calorimetry must provide the answer. Sep-89/Dec-90 ------------------------- Bruschi L, Santini M, Torzo G, Nardelli G; Europhys. Lett. 10 (1989) 303. "Search for neutron emission from a deuterium-titanium system". ** Examined a Ti-D system at temperatures between 77-1100 K, emulating the De Ninno et al experiments, but here also monitoring the D-loading of the Ti by accounting for lost D2 gas (pressure drops). They achieved a loading of 1.65 and, at all loadings, observed no neutron emission. Jul-89/Oct-89 ------------------------- Bryan SR, Gibson JH; Fusion Technol. 21 (1992) 95. "Comments on 'Nuclear energy release in metals'". ** A letter to the Editor, commenting on Mayer and Reitz's previous paper (FT 19 (1991) 552). M&R claimed that there is experimental evidence for their theory of a nuclear reaction with the Pd atoms, leading to Pd isotope distribution changes. Bryan and Gibson say that this is a misinterpretation, and no such changes took place. Aug-91/Jan-92 ------------------------- Budnikov AT, Danilov PA, Kartamyshev GA, Katrich NP, Seminozhenko VP; Vopr. At. Nauki Tekh., Ser. Fiz. Radiats. Povr. Radiats. Mat 1990(1) 81 (in Russian). "Study of gases evolving from palladium, nickel and copper, bombarded with D+ ions, from palladium saturated with gases by heavy water electrolysis and by heating in deuterium". ** The three metals Pd, Ni and Cu were bombarded by D+ ions in a vacuum; other metal samples (Pd) were used as cathodes in heavy water electrolysis or charged in D2 gas. These were then placed in a high vacuum pumping system and the desorption of gases from the metals followed by mass spectroscopy. Masses of 1,2,3,4,5 and 6 were found, as well as higher. The authors exclude, on no basis that this abstractor can see, species containing tritium, ascribing all to combinations of H and D; He is excluded because it does not desorb from within a metal by simple pumping. Dec-89/? ------------------------- Bullock IV JS, Powell GL, Hutchinson DP; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 275. "Electrochemical factors in cold fusion experiments". ** Expertise in electrochem, metal hydrides and physics was brought together to study cold fusion, and this paper reports the electrochemical findings. The FPH(89) paper gave a few clues (some now superseded): unalloyed Pd, Pt anode, high-purity D2O with 0.1M LiOD 0.2 M was used here), bulky electrode. Cell symmetry giving an even current distribution etc. were added as reasonable guesses, and gas-phase precharging of the Pd with D2 gas to save time. The electrolyte was analysed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS), the Pd by metallography, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and x-ray crystallography (XRC). Evolved gases were analysed by high resolution MS (HRMS). No evidence of cold fusion was obtained, and comments are made. There is table of the possible (electro)chemical reactions than may take place at both cathode and anode, as well as in solution; this will be useful for the nonspecialists. There is some discussion of the thermodynamics of the cell and some modelling. A scenario is suggested to explain the FPH exploding cube. It is suggested that several poisons should be tried, and high-symmetry cells with reference electrodes used. ?/Sep-90 ------------------------- Bunch KJ, Grow RW; Fusion Technol. 19 (1991) 2131. "Self-consistent field calculations on diatomic hydrogen in a potential well". ** Diatomic dd in a well, i.e. in an octahedral or tetrahedral site in the PdDx lattice, or in a defect or crack, are looked at here. The Schroedinger equation for such a pair plus electron cloud (an overall neutral region) is solved by the Method of Roothaan and Blinder. Results show that the dd pairs are squeezed together in the well, but not enough to explain cold fusion. The model can however be adjusted and might be useful anyway. Nov-90/Jul-91 ------------------------- Burrows A; Phys. Rev. B: Condens. Matter 40 (1989) 3405. "Enhancement of cold fusion in metal 'hydrides' by screening of proton and deuteron charges". ** Calculates the screening length Ds required to make cnf possible at the claimed rates, given the lattice parameters in PdD(x), which impart an energy of 0.1-1 eV to the deuterons. At low x, where the diffusion coefficient at 300K of deuterons is 10**(-6) cm**2/s, Ds is about 0.5 A, which gives a fusion rate of about 10**(-100)/pair/s. However, in the highly charged beta phase (x>0.7 or so) deuteron diffusion is much slower, reducing Ds but it is not clear by how much. To get values such as claimed by FPH (10**(-19), inferred from their excess heat claims), Ds would have to be 0.03 A. Burrows leaves open the question how this can be achieved. (24-) Apr-89/Aug-89 ------------------------- Bush BF, Lagowski JJ, Miles MH, Ostrom GS; J. Electroanal. Chem. 304 (1991) 271. "Helium production during the electrolysis of D2O in cold fusion experiments". ** The "China Lake" paper. The gas effluent from cold fusion electrolysis cells was analysed for He by a sensitive mass spectrometer. Great care was taken to establish that there was no contamination; the N2 gas used to flush the sample flask was checked and found to contain no He, and blank runs showed none. The Pd cathode was surface-ground with wet silicon carbide paper to remove any possible helium from it (?). The MS detection limit for He was about 8E11 atoms of (4)He. Results show that those electrodes that had produced excess heat (reported elsewhere) also gave off (4)He in amounts large compared to the detection limit, while those that gave little or no excess heat did not. None gave off any detectable (3)He. The He detection limit corresponds to around 8% excess heat, and up to 27% had been observed. For the cell giving out 0.46 W, about 5.4E14 He atoms are expected during the electrolysis time of 4440 s; this is certainly well above their detection limit. The amount of He found is roughly proportional to the excess power (with large uncertainties because the amounts are still small). Dental x-ray film, placed next to the electrodes, showed evidence of radiation emitted from the electrode. Control electrolyses with light water showed no helium; these electrodes had been used previously in heavy water and contained some residual D, so d+p fusion could not be ruled out; indeed, some unexpected excess heat was found, despite the lack of (3)He, expected from this reaction. There was no evidence of radiation on the film. The fact that He was detected implies that it is produced at the metal surface and that most of it escapes. Feb-91/Apr-91 ------------------------- Bush RT, Eagleton RD; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 397. "'Cold nuclear fusion': A hypothetical model to probe an elusive phenomenon". ** CNF differs from hot ditto by using subtle effects such as tunnelling, instead of brute force. This must be assisted by something, which needs to be explained, as well as the known facts (?) such as excess heat, few neutrons, coming in bursts, low x-ray and gamma-ray yields, tritium production, irreproducability and the lack of nuclear signature. Boson clumping is suggested as a jumping-off point for discussion; i.e. the tight clumping of deuterons in the lattice. Helium-4, and some of the other properties of cnf can be accounted for by this model. ?/Dec-90 ------------------------- Bush RT; Fusion Technol. 19 (1991) 313. "Cold 'fusion'. The transmission resonance model fits data on excess heat, predicts optimal trigger points, and suggests nuclear reaction scenarios". ** Bush, in this 40+ page paper, outlines his model, which explains the neutrons, tritium, excess heat and even cluster impact emissions claimed by various experimenters. When an odd integer multiple number of quarter waves of the de Broglie waves of diffusons (here deuterons diffusing within Pd) match the potential well widths of the lattice particles, 100% transmissivity can be achieved, and the deuteron can get close to others on the way, and may fuse. The model not only explains the experimental evidence but also makes detailed predictions of, e.g., the shape of the function excess power vs. current density (it finds a relative minimum, matched to a measured point set). It also leads to optimal conditions ("trigger points") for observing cold fusion, and even goes as far as some preliminary reactor design. The nuclear reaction taking place is not d-d fusion but most likely neutron transfer from deuteron to Pd: d + (105)Pd --> p + (106)Pd + energy. May-90/Mar-91 ------------------------- Bush RT; Fusion Technol. 22 (1992) 301. "A light water excess heat reaction suggests that 'cold fusion' may be 'alkali-hydrogen fusion'". ** Bush here outlines, in a qualitative manner, his disavowal of the theory of Mills and Farrell (which "is flawed"), and his own theory of how cold fusion takes place in a Pd or Ni lattice. A multitude of reactions of the kind p + M1 ==> M2, and d + M1 ==> M2, are possible, where M1 are alkali metals (as well as hydrogen isotopes), and M2 are ultrastable (or near-ultrastable) elements such as (40)Ca, (4)He, etc. This ultrastability, plus the special conditions in a metal hydride/deuteride lattice, is what enables cold fusion. There is thus a wide choice of fusion fuels, and the good news is that deuterium is not needed. In each case, the resulting high energy is dissipated in a kind of anti-Moessbauer effect, due to the rigidity of the metal lattice at these low temperatures. FPH were lucky because Li can do it with d. The author's TRM model (with Eagleton) is invoked along with all this. There is experimental proof. Using a Ni cathode, a Pt anode and 0.57M Na2CO3 as electrolyte, and a plate of a "Ni alloy", excess heat was found, in contrast with M&F, whose theory demands light water and a potassium salt (but using Ni itself). Rb salts, too, do the trick. The reaction with potassium should yield some Ca as the ash, and in fact 14 microgram (about the right amount) were found; using a Rb salt, again about the right amount of Sr was found (3 microgram). This subrevolution within cnf could have immense economic ramifications, writes Bush. Jul-91/Sep-92 ------------------------- Bushuev VS, Ginodman VB, Zherikhina LN, Kuznetsov SP, Lapushkin YuA, Matvienko IP, Nikitenko AI, Perekrestenko AD, Saposhnikov NP, Tolokonnikov SM, Tskhovrebov AM; Sov. Phys. Lebedev Inst. Rep. 1990 (5) 57. Originally: Kratk. Soobshch. Fiz. 1990(5) 41. "Some results obtained by detecting nuclear radiation during heavy-water electrolysis". ** Thermal neutrons and, simultaneously, gamma emissions, were measured at a number of electrolysis cells using various Pt anode shapes and different-size Pd foil cathodes, in heavy water and 30% D2SO4 or 7% LiOD. Neutrons were detected by an array of six (3)He counters around the water-filled region, shielded by paraffin and protected from external neutron background by a shield of borate polyethylene and grounded aluminium. A gamma-ray counter was mounted above the cell. The Pd was baked in vacuum at 500-600 degC for a few hours before, and was electrolytically saturated with D before radiation measurement commenced, in some cases. Measurements took place around the clock for several days, with removal of the cell before, during and after the run, for a background check. Some irreproducable neutron bursts were seen with the larger Pd electrodes. No strong conclusions can be reached. Mar-90/? ------------------------- Bushuev VS, Ginodman VB, Zherikhina LN, Kuznetsov SP, Lapushkin YuA, Matvienko IP, Nikitenko AI, Perekrestenko AD, Saposhnikov NP, Tolokonnikov SM, Tskhovrebov AM; Trud. Ord. Lenin. Ord. Oktyab. Revol. Fiz. Inst. im. P.N. Lebedeva, Ross. Akad. Nauk 220 (1992) 89 (in Russian). "Experiments in the recording of nuclear emissions by electrolysis of heavy water". ** Search for neutrons and gamma radiation, in three variants of electrolytic cells, using small Pd foil 0.1 mm*2.5 cm^2 (0.3 g), a larger foil, 0.3 mm* 30.4 cm^2 (11 g) and a Pd rod 10 mm dia., 90 mm long (86 g). The first two were electrolysed in 30% D2SO4, the rod in this as well as 7% LiOD, all in D2O. Neutrons were detected by a battery of 6 3He tubes around the cell, gammas by CsI(Na) scintillation detectors. The Pd was vacuum annealed at 500-600 C for some h, and electrolysis was maintained for about 100 h. The small foil showed no radiation above background. The large samples showed some irreproducible large neutron pulses, up to 4 times background; no gammas. ------------------------- Bussard RW; Fusion Technol. 16 (1989) 231. "Virtual-state internal nuclear fusion in metal lattices". ** Theory predicts that the cold fusion rate is a maximum at a loading less than the maximum; this can explain some of the observation, and has a bearing on branching ratios. There is also a suggestion of a sort of chain reaction involving generated tritium and deuterium but this - if it can happen - would destroy the palladium and would thus not offer any hope of practical use. (11-) May-89/Sep-89 ------------------------- Butler MA, Ginley DS, Schirber JE, Ewing RI; Fusion Technol. 16 (1989) 388. "High-sensitivity search for neutrons during electrochemical reactions". ** A redundant neutron detector with 3 independent channels was used, with an overall efficiency of 9.2% and a background of 10 count/h. While spurious signals indicative of neutrons occurred at one channel at a time, no real n events (i.e. on all channels) were recorded for a wide variety of conditions. Jun-89/Nov-89 ------------------------- Byung JH; Hwahak Kwa Kongop Ui Chinbo 30 (1990) 86 (in Korean). "Cold nuclear fusion". ** The paper is entirely in Korean. The following was recognisable: "LiOD", "cocktail" (suggesting the Jones paper), "ion beam", the three d-d fusion branches as equations, and that of the p-d reaction; "branching efficiency", "100 mA/cm^2", the applied cell power equation with I*1.54 correction, "scintillation counter", "background", "cosmic rays", "(3)He", "(4)He", "DOE", "(Cold Fusion Panel to the Energy Research Advisory Board)", "cluster", "Wall Street Journal", "photonuclear", "(microcrack)", "10^4-10^6 V/cm". Assumed to be a review of the field. ------------------------- Campbell RB, Perkins LJ, Fusion Technol. 16 (1989) 383. "A study of 'cold fusion' in deuterated titanium subjected to high-current densities". ** Since the cold fusion electrochemists have made much of the actual current densities employed (which does not impress the mainstream electrochemists), the authors here take pre-deuterated titanium (TiD(x), x = 0.9) and simply pass electric current through it, comparing the resulting (ohmic) heat with that in plain Ti hydride. Two different current densities gave no heat beyond ohmic, and no neutrons. Jun-89/Nov-89 ------------------------- Cannizzaro F, Greco G, Raneli M, Spitale MC, Tomarchio E; Fusion Technol. 21 (1992) 86. "Search for neutrons as evidence of cold fusion". ** Report of a Palermo effort. Electrolysis was carried out in D2O containing sodium sulphate, and a mixture of sodium sulphate and iron, nickel and calcium salts. The Pd and Ti cathodes were in the form of plates. Two independent systems of BF3 thermal neutron counters were used, with pulse height analysis. Current densities went up to 24 mA/cm**2. The results do not confirm even Jones+ levels, at an upper limit of 3.6E-24 fus/d-d pair/s. May-91/Jan-92 ------------------------- Capek V; Czech. J. Phys. B39 (1989) 793. "Tunnelling efficiency and the problem of cold fusion". ** Argue, irrespective of the final outcome of the CNF debate, that there is a theoretical possibility of a tunnelling mechanism which exists in solids but not in vacuum, to allow CNF. Previous work by the author and elementary QM lead, via coupling to "the bath" (the crystal environment, which differs from a vacuum) to tunnelling rates many orders of magnitude higher than in vacuum. Some simplifying assumptions were made and some of these, when eliminated, might suppress the fusion rates. More work needed. (24-) Apr-89/Jul-89 ------------------------- Carpenter JM; Nature (London) 338 (1989) 711; 27-Apr-89. "Cold fusion: what's going on?" ** JMC was a referee of Jones+'s paper, and was invited by the editor to comment publically on the paper. He warns that cosmic ray neutrons must be eliminated from neutron measurements, or at least recognised. Their intensity is about the same as that reported for CNF, and there can be peaks at the energy 2.45 MeV. Suggests that going underground by two or three metres should reduce the cosmic ray problem by an order of magnitude. ?/Apr-89 ------------------------- Case LC; Fusion Technol. 20 (1991) 478. "The reality of 'cold fusion'". ** The fact that the positive results of cold fusion experiments are few in number and widely scattered is not evidence against the phenomenon, but instead evidence of a lack of understanding of the required conditions, writes Case. He then looks at the results of Yamaguchi and Nishioka and concludes that these can only be due to a nuclear process, most likely d-d fusion. He proposes a tentative mechanism, catalysed (initiated) by traces of tritium present in heavy water. D+T fusion releases neutrons, which then catalyse the main D+D fusion reaction, which releases further tritium, etc. There remains the lack of neutrons. These might be captured, e.g. by tritium or (3)He, both present. This leads to suggestions for improving experiments. May-91/Dec-91 ------------------------- Case M, Boehm R; HDT (Am. Soc. Mech. Eng.) 151 (Heat Transfer Adv. Energy Syst.) (1990) 55. "Assessment of thermal energy output from electrochemical cells - a critical review". ** An excellent and simply written description of the problems with cold fusion calorimetry, and the types of calorimeters that have been used. Several suggestions are made for better designs, and an error analysis for the three main designs given. These errors are much larger than those claimed by previous users of the designs. Good design suggestions include the use of differential thermocouples, a differential design for a cooling jacket type that uses only a calibration heater and three temperatures (or two differences), and a good suggestion for better use of the (most accurate) Seebeck effect design. A response simulation is also presented. ------------------------- Cecil FE, Ferg D, Furtak TE, Mader C, McNeil JA, Williamson DL; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 195. "Study of energetic charged particles emitted from thin deuterated palladium foils subject to high current densities". ** Some cold fusion results, such as heat without radiation emissions, could be due to the radiation being in the form of short-range charged particles. So this team looked for such emissions from Pd foil, irradiated by a D+ beam at 95 keV. During beam inpact, roughly the expected flux of neutrons was given off (self-targeting). The beam was switched off, electric current passed through the foil and energy spectra measured. Quote: "In Fig. 4a, accumulated over a period of 19 hours, there is a suggestion of a peak at about 3 MeV which could be identified as the protons from the d(d,p)t reaction. Another spectrum shows a peak at 5 MeV, and this is not seen for the controls in which either there was no current running through the PdD or a current running through undeuterated Pd. The authors have no explanation for this peak, which is consistent with a (d,p) reaction with various Pd isotopes, all very unlikely to occur. ?/Jun-90 ------------------------- Cecil FE, Liu H, Yan JS; Phys. Rev. C 47 (1993) 1178. "Measurements of branching ratios of low energy deuteron-induced nuclear reactions on 2H, 6Li, and 10B". ** The Oppenheimer-Phillips effect suggests that different target electric polarisation may, at low energies of impinging deuterons, affect the branching ratio of the fusion path. The deuteron is roughly seen as a proton and neutron, with the neutron leading due to electric effects from the targets, just prior to impact. Deuteron induced reactions have here been measured at d beam energies of 6, 27.5 and 70 keV on targets of 2H (i.e. D), 6Li and 10B. No appreciable dependence of the branching ratios on beam energy was found in the energy range looked at. Jun-92/Mar-93 ------------------------- Cedzynska K, Barrowes SC, Bergeson HE, Knight LC, Will FG; Fusion Technol. 20 (1991) 108. "Tritium analysis in palladium with an open system analytical procedure". ** Palladium from three different suppliers (45 samples in all) were subjected to open-cell electrolysis, as done by Wolf et al, with the aim of throwing light on tritium analysis. This was done on both the cathode materials and the electrolyte. There was no evidence of any tritium being produced but some evidence of possible artifacts and even artifactal low readings. Feb-91/Aug-91 ------------------------- Cedzynska K, Will FG; Fusion Technol. 22 (1992) 156. "Closed-system analysis of tritium in palladium". ** This describes a method of detecting tritium in Pd and the results of using it on about 90 samples of Pd, supplied by Hoover and Strong and Johnson- Mathey. The metal sample is simply dissolved in a destillation flask and the solution distilled past a catalyst to burn any tritium gas to water. The distillate is then prepared for scintillation analysis for tritium. Themethod was standardised, and a sensitivity of about 5E07 tritium atoms was found for the 5 ml cell, or a ratio of 1:1E13 t/Pd. None of the 90 commercial Pd samples showed any tritium contamination, in contrast with the claims of prior tritium contamination by Wolf. Thus, commercial Pd appears to be free of tritium. Jul-91/Aug-92 ------------------------- Celani F, Spallone A, Croce F, Storelli L, Fortunati S, Tului M, Sparvieri N; Fusion Technol. 22 (1992) 181. "Search for enhancement of neutron emission from neutron-irradiated, deuterated, high-temperature superconductors in a very low background environment". ** The authors consider that copper-oxide-based high temperature superconducting materials (which absorb hydrogen) should also aid d-d fusion. Preliminary results were obtained by Jones. These materials have a perovskite crystal structure, similar to some geological crystals in the Earth's mantle. A two-(3)He-tube neutron detector and Pb shielding bricks were arranged around a cell containing variously a calibrating neutron source or a sample of the material, exposed to D2 gas at 40 and 36 bar. Some thermal cycling was carried out. Generally there were no deviations from background or blank detections, but there was one triple neutron event during a superconducting transition; such a triple event is likely to occur once in about 80 h, whereas all the thermal cycle runs lasted only 2.4 h. Other significant multiple events were seen in some other runs, going up to 30 sigmas above background. Thus, HTSC materials are suitable for cold fusion experiments and nonequilibrium conditions are favourable. Oct-91/Aug-92 ------------------------- Celani F, Spallone A, Pace S, Polichetti B, Saggese A, Liberatori L, Di Stefano V, Marini P; Fusion Technol. 17 (1990) 718. "Further measurements on electrolytic cold fusion with D2O and palladium at Gran Sasso Laboratory". ** Electrolysis experiments with Pd were performed in the low-background underground lab, measuring gamma and neutron radiation. The diagram shows that two (3)He detectors, two NaI detectors and a plastic scintillator were used. It appears that the electrolyte was 0.1M LiOH in heavy water. Electrolysis current density was 60 mA/cm**2, at hyperpure, vacuum-annealed Pd. There were some definite gamma events on all detectors, calculating out as up to 1E-19 fusions/pair/s. These gamma events were unaccompanied by neutron events, so the authors conclude that an aneutronic process is taking place. They also state that it was not possible to exclude fractoemission effects. Future work is planned. Dec-89/Jul-90 ------------------------- Cerofolini CF, Para AF; Springer Proc. Phys. 59 (Exot. At. Condens. Matter) (1992) 129. "Alternatives in low energy fusion?" ** While hot fusion meets with increasing problems as it approaches break- even, there are appearing many claims for low-energy [cold] fusion. Here, cold fusion and the related cluster impact fusion (CIF) are examined and a unified model proposed to explain them, including their poor reproducibility. Muon catalysis, fractofusion, electrolytic fusion and CIF are discussed. The authors' "hot cloud" theory of CIF also implies that deuterium atoms explosively released from supercharged titanium deuteride might fuse at the levels found by Jones et al. At these levels, one is about 5 orders of magnitude below break-even. ------------------------- Cerofolini GF, Foglio Para A; Fusion Technol. 23 (1993) 98. "Can binuclear atoms solve the cold fusion puzzle?" ** The evidence for cold fusion is inconsistent with known physical laws and self-contradictory. The authors have previously proposed a model of binuclear atoms (dd)2e, but this is not a sufficient explanation. Here, they examine the possibility that these binuclear atoms partly activate cold fusion by the capture of a thermal neutron, which then leads to the breakup of the group, into various fragments, among them D, T, and (4)He. This would cause neutron depletion, and delayed emission, and cnf can be stimulated by thermal neutrons. All this can explain tritium enrichment, the formation of (4)He and neutron bursts. The theory can be tested experimentally. Feb-92/Jan-93 ------------------------- Chambaud G, Levy B, Esteve JG; Phys. Lett. A156 (1991) 395. "Estimate of Ti effects on D-D fusion". ** A theoretical attempt to explain both cold fusion and cluster impact fusion claims, by looking at possible screening effects in Ti. In the employed model, Ti-D and D-D interactions are taken as additive, and this leads to an overestimate of the tunnelling rate. Nevertheless, this turns out too low to account for observation claims. Oct-89/Jul-91 ------------------------- Chambers GP, Eridon JE, Grabowski KS, Sartwell BD, Chrisey DB; J. Fusion Energy 9 (1990) 281. "Charged particle spectra of palladium thin films during low energy deuterium ion implantation". ** If a new nuclear reaction, rather than conventional d-d fusion, is responsible for the results of FPH(89), then one might expect heavy charged particle emissions such as alphas, tritons or protons. These would be emitted at MeV energies but stopped within the Pd lattice, so not easy to detect. So thin film Pd electrodes were used here, loaded with deuterium by an ion beam and charged particles detected by a silicon surface barrier detector. During several runs, a few counts were detected at the same energy of about 21 MeV, at about the same time into the run (2700 s). If these are due to charged particles, these must be heavier than D; possibly (3)He or (4)He nuclei. No known fusion reaction can account for these, though. Other explanations, in terms of artifacts, are possible.