how cold is too cold?

satori* · Posted: Sep 14, 2004 4:11 pm Post subject:

Chris41, thats exactly what we do, hahaha.

and seven11dmd, watch out for kryptonite!

kento911 · Kickflip Joined: 29 Mar 2004 Posts: 3657 City: Phoenix

Knew I had some crap I had to write on that kickin around, here ya go!

Heavy water is chemically identical to ordinary water. The main difference is that heavy water is made with a hydrogen isotope that has a neutron on top of the proton in the nucleus. This isotope is known as deuterium and occurs in nature at about 1 deuterium atom for every 6,700 normal hydrogen atoms. Deuterium is not radioactive, unlike tritium, which is made primarily in nuclear reactors and is used in luminescent paints for watches, chemical tracers, and H-bombs.

There are physical differences between light and heavy water as well. Heavy water is heavier (no shizzle), it's density being 1.108 g/cm3. Heavy ice will sink in normal water. The freezing and boiling points are also higher, with heavy water freezing at 38 F and boiling at 214 F.

Even though normal water and heavy water are identical chemically, heavy water can be mildly toxic, given certain requirements are met. Heavy water toxicity begins to occour when about 50% of the water in the body has been replaced by D2O. Prolonged heavy water consumption can cause death, but realistically that means you have to drink enough heavy water, that half of your body's water becomes replaced by it, and even then it would take forever to see side effects, despite the fact that not all nuclear power plants use heavy water, so it may not be a heavy water lake at all.

satori* · Posted: Sep 14, 2004 6:20 pm Post subject:

deuterium is radioactive, and is used in nuclear reactors. not highly though, not as much as most "radioactive" elements or chemicals.

all elements have a half life and are thus radioactive. they just label a handful "radioactive" because they're practically radioactive.

MadMac · Faceplant Joined: 19 Nov 2003 Posts: 14

I've always liked this one "if you can't afford the shrinkage, don't get in the water"

seven11dmd · Posted: Sep 14, 2004 11:27 pm Post subject:

well anyways i think its a safe lake, plenty of people use it, we only have a few deformations a year

kento911 · Kickflip Joined: 29 Mar 2004 Posts: 3657 City: Phoenix

satori*, you know what I meant, by "radioactive", and deuterium isn't used directly in the reactor, only as part of the heat exchange method used to cool the reactors. besides the point that the government moniters heavily the production of heavy water within the US border, making it very hard to obtain and it's street value approx 300 dollars per kilogram; so more than likely seven11dmd's, lake is not heavy water,

seven11dmd, rofl

I forgot tritium is also used on night sights (iron sights, not night vision) for guns

byronnash · Pop Shuvit Joined: 15 Sep 2003 Posts: 104 City: Charlotte

I don't mess with much with all that cold weather/water riding. Not to sound like a wimp, but who really has any fun when your eyebrows are cramping so bad you can't concentrate on your run?

I'll start wearing a wetsuit in a few weeks and then stop for the winter in late October or November. I'm not too happy when the water drops below 60.