: Because it is denser, ice cubes made of heavy water will sink in a glass of ordinary liquid water. 2. Primary Uses
: It slows down neutrons in nuclear reactors without absorbing them. This allows reactors like the Canadian CANDU design to use natural uranium rather than expensive enriched uranium. Heavy Water
Heavy water is approximately than ordinary water. Appearance : Colorless and odorless liquid. Freezing/Boiling Points : It freezes at ) and boils at : Because it is denser, ice cubes made
: Recent studies indicate it has a slightly sweet taste mediated by human taste receptors, though this was long debated. This allows reactors like the Canadian CANDU design
: In biology, "doubly labeled water" (containing heavy isotopes of both oxygen and hydrogen) is used to measure an organism's average daily metabolic rate. 3. Production Methods
: Unlike the faint blue tint of regular water in large volumes, heavy water is colorless because its molecular vibrations are shifted into the infrared spectrum.
: Large quantities are used in specialized detectors, such as the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory , to study solar particles.