Heavy Water Page

: It is widely used as a solvent in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy because deuterium does not interfere with the hydrogen signals being measured.

: It slows down neutrons in nuclear reactors without absorbing them. This allows reactors like the Canadian CANDU design to use natural uranium rather than expensive enriched uranium.

Deuterium occurs naturally but is rare—only about hydrogen atoms in ocean water is deuterium. Heavy Water

: Recent studies indicate it has a slightly sweet taste mediated by human taste receptors, though this was long debated.

Heavy water, or , is a form of water where the standard hydrogen atoms (protium) are replaced by deuterium , a heavier isotope containing both a proton and a neutron . While it looks, smells, and largely behaves like ordinary water, its unique nuclear and physical properties make it critical for nuclear energy and specialized scientific research. 1. Key Physical & Chemical Properties : It is widely used as a solvent

: In biology, "doubly labeled water" (containing heavy isotopes of both oxygen and hydrogen) is used to measure an organism's average daily metabolic rate. 3. Production Methods

: Large quantities are used in specialized detectors, such as the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory , to study solar particles. Deuterium occurs naturally but is rare—only about hydrogen

Heavy Water: A Manufacturers' Guide for the Hydrogen Century