RADIOLYSIS OF 4.5 MOL DM-3 LIOH WITH LI-6(N, ALPHA)H-3 ION RECOIL

The radiolytic production of hydrogen, oxygen and hydrogen peroxide in 4.5 mol dm-3 LiOH solutions by ion recoil from the Li-6(n, alpha)H-3 reaction has been studied as a function of hydrogen over-pressure and added methanol. Computer simulations of these systems were also carried out. Experimentally, no suppression of radiolysis was observed with the addition of up to 330 kPa of hydrogen, while computer simulations indicate that 6 kPa should have been sufficient. However, further simulations show that a small amount of impurity which can cycle between two oxidation states, e.g. Fe2+/Fe3+, can account for this observation. In general, reasonable agreement between experiment and simulation was found.