Search for Evidence of Cold Fusion: Looking for Charged Particle Emissions Resulting from Pd-D Co-Deposition

Rick Cantwell (speaker) & Matt McConnell

Pd-D co-deposition, the simultaneous depositing of palladium and deuterium onto the cathode of an electrolytic cell, has been reported as a reliable method for the initiation of cold fusion. More recently Pd-D co-deposition has been reported by Mosier-Boss et al. in 2007 and 2009 in order to generate charged particles. In this work a CR-39, a solid-state particle detector, is used to record evidence of charged particles. We have used these techniques as well as electronic detectors to look for charged particles emitted during Pd-D co-deposition. We examined whether conventional processes might account for some of the charged particle observations.

The earlier work suggests anomalous nuclear products are responsible for tracks observed on CR-39 detectors. CR-39 pits similar to those reported by Mosier-Boss et al. were found using both in situ CR-39 and Mylar-protected CR-39. However, CR-39 protected by a combination of Mylar and a small air gap did not show any pits. The electrolyte, as its chemistry changes during the electrolysis, is shown to damage the acrylic cell containing the experiment and to damage an aluminum foil separated from the electrolyte by a Mylar film. This damage together with the absence of pits when a small air gap is added to the Mylar protection suggests chemical reactions may be the source of the observed CR-39 pits. The absence of any detected charged particles using a YAP:Ce scintillation detector further supports the conclusion.

Recorded at the 31st annual SSE Conference in 2012 at the Millennium Hotel in Boulder, Colorado, USA.

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Published on November 14, 2018