7 Facts About Heavy Water: Products For Sale, Is Deuterium Oxide Safe to Drink?

Published on January 20, 2017 at 8:59 am by Nusreta Beranac in Lists

It is redundant to say that without water life as we know it wouldn’t be possible, so if you have heard about heavy water and wondered about its characteristics then read our list of 7 facts about heavy water: products for sale, is deuterium oxide safe to drink.

Water is the primary building block of cells. Because of the percentage of water in our bodies, which varies depending on age and gender and is usually between 50-75% of the human body, each person has to drink sufficient amounts of water every day in order to maintain a well-functioning organism. Drinking enough water every day not only helps us stay healthy but also helps us preserve our beauty. People who consume a lot of water per day usually have weight issues less frequently and also have radiant skin. If you would like to learn about healthiest water out there then read our list of top 10 Healthiest Bottled Water in the World.

7 Facts About Heavy Water: Products For Sale, Is Deuterium Oxide Safe to Drink?

We are all aware of the importance of water, but are all waters the same? You have probably heard about heavy water and wanted to know more about its content and effects. What does it taste like? Is it dangerous or safe to drink? Where can we find heavy water? Is it radioactive? Can we poison ourselves drinking heavy water? You will find more about this in this Youtube video.

However, if you haven’t heard about this type of water here are a few bits of information to get you started. Heavy water is water that contains heavy hydrogen, or what is known as deuterium. There are two varieties related to heavy water, the first one contains deuterium oxide and it is represented as D₂O, and the other one is deuterium protium oxide which we know as DHO. It occurs naturally but in significantly smaller amounts than the regular water we drink every day. The taste of heavy water is slightly different than normal water, as it is not as pleasant to drink as regular water. This unusual water was discovered in the 1930s and ever since its discovery the nature of heavy water as well as its effects have been thoroughly researched and continue to be researched now. Many things about heavy water are still debated about. For example, people disagree about whether it is safe to drink it or not so we have invested some time into providing answers to this and many other similar questions in order to solve your dilemmas and provide you with the right information. We sought assistance from Britannica, Encyclopedia, and About Education in our search for the right answers. It is time to arm yourself with knowledge and reliable information with our 7 facts about heavy water: products for sale, is deuterium oxide safe to drink?

7. What Does Heavy Water Consist of?

Deuterium oxide or heavy water consist of heavy hydrogen or deuterium. Heavy hydrogen is different from the one that is found in the water we drink every day because each atom of heavy hydrogen or deuterium contains a proton and a neutron.

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6. Is Deuterium Oxide Safe to Drink?

According to Reddit users, drinking heavy water is not very pleasant, but other than feeling a little dizzy, they didn’t feel any other major consequences. Some users stated that they drank heavy water within different experiments and felt sick after drinking 1 liter of it but soon felt much better and unaffected by smaller amounts of heavy water. About Education explains provides a similar answer to this question. A person might drink small quantities of heavy water without feeling sick but drinking it long term is definitely not recommended as replacing 25-50% of ordinary water in our bodies with heavy water would cause serious problems with 50% being deadly. Ready for more intereseting facts about heavy water: products for sale, is deuterium oxide safe to drink?

5. Is Deuterium Oxide Radioactive?

Although drinking too much of deuterium oxide can show similar effects as radiation poisoning, the answer to this question is: no, heavy water is not radioactive. On the other hand, tritiated water, which is another type of heavy water, is radioactive and it is rarely found in nature. So, what’s next on our list of facts about heavy water: products for sale, is deuterium oxide safe to drink?

4. How is Heavy Water Produced?

Heavy water is a consequence of a process known as electrolysis. When electricity breaks up water molecules it releases hydrogen as gas and increases the concentration of heavy water as a result. Another way to obtain heavy water is by evaporation. That means heavy water can be extracted by light water by evaporation and this method is less expensive than the first one.

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3. Is Heavy Water Used in Nuclear Reactors?

The next question on our list of 7 facts about heavy water: products for sale, is deuterium oxide safe to drink? regards nuclear science. In nuclear science, heavy water was used to make nuclear reactors and it was extremely valuable during the World War II. Heavy water is known to be useful in slowing down neutrons so it is used as a moderator in nuclear power plants.

2. Does Heavy Water Ice Sink in Water?

Although ordinary ice and heavy water ice look exactly the same, it is not quite so. Ordinary ice cubes float in water, while heavy water ice cubes sink because of its density, which is greater than that of ordinary water. Just take a look at this experiment in the video below!

1.Where Can We Buy Heavy Water?

We will finish our list of 7 facts about heavy water: products for sale, is deuterium oxide safe to drink? with information about heavy water products and where to buy them. Heavy water is now available commercially and can even be purchased online. Isowater, for example, offers deuterium oxide products in many different sizes. Their products contain 99,9% of deuterium oxide and a bottle of 1kg costs $779 while a 4kg bottle costs $2,890.