3 ms·

There's 2 (stable) kinds of heavy water : deuterium and tritium. Deuterium is perfectly safe, and it's heavier. Nobody's ever drunk it in even tiny quantities t

by waps 12y ago

There's 2 (stable) kinds of heavy water : deuterium and tritium. Deuterium is perfectly safe, and it's heavier. Nobody's ever drunk it in even tiny quantities though, so there could be surprises. Tritium is only arguably stable though, and you definitely should not drink it. It's perfectly safe to swim in it though, just keep it outside your skin. Drinking deuterium is going to be very expensive though, given the effort necessary to separate it. Poisoning someone with tritium is going to be more expensive than pouring molten platina over them though. Any preference for the oxygen in the cubes ? O16, O17, or O18 ? O16 would be the "common man" oxygen. All three are safe. None of the other isotopes are stable enough to be produced in significant quantities. Making heavy ice cubes out of H2O with the O17 is probably the cheapest "nuclear" way to produce heavy ice. Order here: http://www.sigmaaldrich.com/catalog/product/aldrich/151882 http://www.sigmaaldrich.com/catalog/product/aldrich/151882 Cheaper than I would have thought.

throwaway7548 12y ago
Unknown Internet Source: "Despite the fact the light water and heavy water are chemically identical, heavy water is mildly toxic. How can this be? Since heavy water is heavier than normal water, the speed of chemical reactions involving it is altered somewhat, as is the strength of some types of bonds it forms. This affects certain cellular processes, notably mitosis, or cell division, due to the difference in binding energy in the hydrogen bonds needed to make certain proteins. Mouse studies have shown that drinking only heavy water along with normal feed eventually causes degeneration of tissues that need to replenish themselves frequently, and leads to cumulative damage from injuries that don't heal as quickly. One study likens the effects to those suffered by chemotherapy patients. Heavy water toxicity manifests itself when about 50% of the water in the body has been replaced by D2O. Prolonged heavy water consumption can cause death."
qq66 12y ago
I don't think it's possible to say that "deuterium is perfectly safe" and also that "nobody's ever drunk it in even tiny quantities." You mention yourself, there can always be surprises. I'd rather someone else discover those before I try it :)

by waps 12y ago

throwaway7548 12y ago

Unknown Internet Source: "Despite the fact the light water and heavy water are chemically identical, heavy water is mildly toxic. How can this be? Since heavy water is heavier than normal water, the speed of chemical reactions involving it is altered somewhat, as is the strength of some types of bonds it forms. This affects certain cellular processes, notably mitosis, or cell division, due to the difference in binding energy in the hydrogen bonds needed to make certain proteins. Mouse studies have shown that drinking only heavy water along with normal feed eventually causes degeneration of tissues that need to replenish themselves frequently, and leads to cumulative damage from injuries that don't heal as quickly. One study likens the effects to those suffered by chemotherapy patients. Heavy water toxicity manifests itself when about 50% of the water in the body has been replaced by D2O. Prolonged heavy water consumption can cause death."

qq66 12y ago

I don't think it's possible to say that "deuterium is perfectly safe" and also that "nobody's ever drunk it in even tiny quantities." You mention yourself, there can always be surprises. I'd rather someone else discover those before I try it :)