THE EXTRACTION AND PURIFICATION OF XENON AND KRYPTON ISOTOPES FROM NEUTRON IRRADIATED URANIUM

Abstract

Both long-lived and stable isotopes of krypton and xenon are formed as the result of the slow neutron fission of uranium 235. A method is described for the extraction of these gases from massive neutron irradiated uranium metal, for separating them from contaminating gases and from each other and measuring them in a McLeod gauge, the amounts of uranium being of the order of 50 gm. and the rare gases of the order of 10⁻³ cc. at N.T.P. An accurate value of the ratio of fission xenon to fission krypton is given. Further experiments concern Geiger–Müller counter measurements on the long-lived krypton isotope.