Tritium and neutron emission in D2O electrolysis at Pd and Ti cathodes

The possible emission of nuclear particles during the electrochemical loading/discharging of deuterium in/at suitable metals has been investigated by analyzing in succession four cells equipped with Ti rod, Pd tube and Ti plate cathodes. It was found that 3H enrichment in the electrolyte purely due to electrolytic T/D separation seems to be related to the characteristics of D,O used; notwithstanding the possible occurrence of this effect, three cells out of four showed (at least during the first week of the run) 3H excess above the statistical error. A quantitative evaluation of neutrons from the cells was not tried owing to the high fluctuating background. However, from the statistical analysis of pulse frequency recorded during either long electrolytic or blank experiments, it appears that in the former case the background is overlapped by a phenomenon of higher frequency.