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Metallic plutonium is a fire hazard, especially if finely divided. In a moist environment, plutonium forms hydrides on its surface, which are pyrophoric and may ignite in air at room temperature. Plutonium expands up to 70% in volume as it oxidizes and thus may break its container. [44] The radioactivity of the burning material is another hazard.
Metallic plutonium is produced by reacting plutonium tetrafluoride with barium, calcium or lithium at 1200 °C. [8] Metallic plutonium is attacked by acids, oxygen, and steam but not by alkalis and dissolves easily in concentrated hydrochloric, hydroiodic and perchloric acids. [9]
Metallic plutonium has several different solid allotropes.The δ phase is the least dense and most easily machinable. It is formed at temperatures of 310–452 °C at ambient pressure (1 atmosphere), and is thermodynamically unstable at lower temperatures.
Metallic plutonium, notably in the form of the plutonium-gallium alloy, degrades chiefly by two mechanisms: corrosion, and self-irradiation. In very dry air, plutonium, despite its high chemical reactivity, forms a passivation layer of plutonium(IV) oxide that slows down the corrosion to about 200 nanometers per year. In moist air, however ...
"Plutonium is a weird material," said Mike Furlanetto, a lab scientist and the project's director. "We understand it well enough to be confident our [nuclear] stockpile works, but there are a lot ...
Plutonium in the delta (δ) phase [7] normally exists in the 310 °C to 452 °C range but is stable at room temperature when alloyed with a small percentage of gallium, aluminium, or cerium, enhancing workability and allowing it to be welded in weapons applications. The δ phase has more typical metallic character and is roughly as strong and ...
A group of researchers is warning that testing around a Los Alamos, New Mexico neighborhood has revealed what it calls "alarmingly high levels of plutonium." But to Department of Energy officials ...
Watchdogs are raising new concerns about legacy contamination in Los Alamos, the birthplace of the atomic bomb and home to a renewed effort to manufacture key components for nuclear weapons. A ...