The Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in Trombay is India’s premier nuclear research center, “with expertise covering the entire spectrum of Nuclear Science and Engineering and related areas” (http://www.barc.gov.in/). From 1989 through 1994, some of the best cold fusion research ever published was performed at BARC, under the leadership of the Center’s director Dr. P. K. Iyengar. In December 1989, as the first round of experiments was completed, the center published a book: Iyengar, P.K. and M. Srinivasan, BARC Studies In Cold Fusion, BARC-1500. 1989, Government of India, Atomic Energy Commission: Bombay.
The LENR-CANR.org library includes several papers from the book, as well as papers published by BARC researchers elsewhere.
Dr. Iyengar later went on to became the Chairman of India’s Atomic Energy Commission. Unfortunately, after he left BARC, and Dr. Srinivasan and others retired, conservative scientists who opposed cold fusion brought the research to an end.
However, a dramatic turnaround may be underway in early 2008. A discussion meeting was held at the National Insitute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) in Bangalore, on January 9, 2008. Mahadeva Srinivasan reports that many senior scientists “gathered to take stock of the status of cold fusion” at this meeting, and: “The meeting concluded on a very positive note resolving to send a formal recommendation to the office of the Chief Scientific Advisor to the cabinet in Delhi, namely Dr. R. Chidambaram that cold fusion research be funded adequately.”
NatureINDIA published an on-line article describing the NIAS meeting by K. S. Jayaraman, “Cold fusion hot again.” The article quotes P. K. Iyengar: “‘We did great injustice to the country by stopping the research that was going on at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre BARC),’ Padmanabha Krishnagopala Iyengar, considered the father of cold fusion in India, told Nature India . Iyengar, former director of BARC, who could not attend the meeting, said on phone that India had lost out 15 years by this wrong move but even now ‘it is not too late to revive it.'” The meeting was also described by M. Srinivsan in Current Science, “Meeting Report — Energy Concepts for the 21st Century.”
Michael McKubre (SRI) reported that: “The interactions we had with Indian scientists, politicians and businessmen were in every instance and degree more positive and substantive than I had any reason to dream possible. . . . India is ready to roar!”
Here is an autoradiograph from BARC. For a larger image and more information see: “A Look At Experiments.”
A Polaroid autoradiograph from M. Srinivasan, Neutron Physics Division (ret.), Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Bombay, India. Click for larger image.
Informal Overview
Here is an informal interview with Srinivasan, conducted by Russ George: The Cold Fusion Phenomenon. This is an overview and a brief history of research at BARC.
Papers from BARC Studies In Cold Fusion, BARC Report 1500
The cover of the book BARC Studies In Cold Fusion, BARC-1500. Click for larger image.
CONTENTS |
|
| Preface & Summary | |
A: ELECTROLYTIC CELL EXPERIMENTS |
|
| A1 | Cold Fusion Experiments Using a Commercial Pd-Ni Electrolyser |
| M.S. Krishnan, S.K. Malhotra, D.G. Gaonkar, M. Srinivasan, S.K. Sikka, A. Shyam, V. Chitra, T.S. Iyengar and P.K. Iyengar | |
| A2 | Preliminary Results of Cold Fusion Studies Using a Five Module High Current Electrolytic Cell |
| M.G. Nayar, SK. Mitra, P. Raghunathan, M.S. Krishnan, S.K. Malhotra, D.G. Gaonkar, S.K. Sikka, A Shyam and V. Chitra | |
| A3 | Observation of Cold Fusion in a Ti-SS Electrolytic Cell |
| M.S. Krishnan, S.K. Malhotra, D.G. Gaonkar, M.G. Nayar, A. Shyam and S.K. Sikka | |
| A4 | Multiplicity Distribution of Neutron Emission in Cold Fusion Experiments |
| A. Shyam, M. Srinivasan, S.B. Degwekar and L.V. Kulkarni | |
| A5 | Search for Electrochemically Catalysed Fusion of Deuterons in Metal Lattice |
| T.P. Radhakrishnan, R. Sundaresan, J. Arunachalam, V. Sitarama Raju, R. Kalyanaraman, S Gangadharan and P.K. Iyengar | |
| A6 | Tritium Generation during Electrolysis Experiment |
| T.P. Radhakrishnan, R. Sundaresan, S. Gangadharan, B.K. Sen, T.S. Murthy | |
| A7 | WITHDRAWN |
| A8 | Verification Studies in Electrochemically Induced Fusion of Deuterons in Palladium Cathodes |
| H. Bose, L.H. Prabhu, S. Sankarnarayanan, R.S. Shetiya, N. Veeraraghavan, P.V. Joshi, T.S. Murthy, B.K. Sen and K.G.B. Sharma | |
| A9 | Tritium Analysis of Samples Obtained from Various Electrolysis Experiments at BARC |
| T.S. Murthy, T.S. Iyengar, B.K. Sen and T.B. Joseph | |
| A10 | Material Balance of Tritium in the Electrolysis of Heavy Water |
| M.S. Krishnan, S.K. Malhotra and S.K. Sadhukhan | |
| A11 | Technique for Concentration of Helium in Electrolytic Gases for Cold Fusion Studies |
| K. Annaji Rao | |
PART B: D2 GAS LOADING EXPERIMENTS |
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| B1 | Search for Nuclear Fusion in Gas Phase Deuteriding of Titanium Metal |
| P. Raj, P. Suryanarayana, A. Sathyamoorthy and T. Datta | |
| B2 | Deuteration of Machined Titanium Targets for Cold Fusion Experiments |
| V.K. Shrikande and K.C. Mittal | |
| B3 | Autoradiography of Deuterated Ti and Pd Targets for Spatially Resolved Detection of Tritium Produced by Cold Fusion |
| R.K. Rout, M. Srinivasan and A. Shyam | |
| B4 | Evidence for Production of Tritium via Cold Fusion Reactions in Deuterium Gas Loaded Palladium |
| M.S. Krishnan, S.K. Malhotra, D.G. Gaonkar, V.D. Nagvenkar and H.K. Sadhukhan | |
PART C: THEORETICAL PAPERS |
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| C1 | Materials Issues in the So-Called ‘Cold Fusion’ Experiments |
| R. Chidambaram and V.C. Sahni | |
| C2 | Remarks on Cold Fusion |
| B.A. Dasannacharya and K.R. Rao | |
| C3 | The Role of Combined Electron-Deuteron Screening in D-D Fusion in Metals |
| S.N. Vaidya and Y.S. Mayya | |
| C4 | A Theory of Cold Nuclear Fusion in Deuterium Loaded Palladium |
| Swapan K. Ghosh, H.K. Saidhukhan and Ashish K. Dhara | |
| C5 | Fracture Phenomena in Crystalline Solids: A Brief Review in the Context of Cold Fusion |
| T.C. Kaushik, M. Srinivasan and A. Shyam | |
| Acknowledgement | |
Other papers by authors from BARC
| Chindarkar, A.R., et al., Observation of Anomalous Emissions of High Energy (=1 MeV) Charged Particles When 5 keV Protons Impinge on Palladium and Titanium Foils. Trans. Fusion Technol., 1994. 26(4T): p. 197. |
| Degweker, S.B. and M. Srinivasan, A simple dead time method for measuring the fraction of bunched neutronic emission in cold fusion experiments. Ann. Nucl. Energy, 1990. 17: p. 583. |
| Garg, A.B., et al. Protocol for Controlled and Rapid Loading/Unloading of H2/D2 Gas in Self Heated Pd Wires to Trigger Nuclear Events. in 5th International Conference on Cold Fusion. 1995. Monte-Carlo, Monaco: IMRA Europe, Sophia Antipolis Cedex, France. |
| Iyengar, P.K. Cold Fusion Results in BARC Experiments. in Fifth International Conf. on Emerging Nucl. Energy Ststems. 1989. Karlsruhe, Germany. |
| Iyengar, P.K. and M. Srinivasan. Overview of BARC Studies in Cold Fusion. in The First Annual Conference on Cold Fusion. 1990. University of Utah Research Park, Salt Lake City, Utah: National Cold Fusion Institute. |
| Iyengar, P.K., et al., Bhabha Atomic Research Centre studies on cold fusion. Fusion Technol., 1990. 18: p. 32. |
| Kaushik, T.C., et al., Preliminary report on direct measurement of tritium in liquid nitrogen treated TiDx chips. Indian J. Technol., 1990. 28: p. 667. |
| Kaushik, T.C., et al., Experimental investigations on neutron emission from projectile-impacted deuterated solids. Phys. Lett. A, 1997. 232: p. 384. |
| Ramamurthy, H., et al. Further Studies on Excess Heat Generation in Ni-H2O Electrolytic Cells. in Fourth International Conference on Cold Fusion. 1993. Lahaina, Maui: Electric Power Research Institute 3412 Hillview Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94304. |
| Ray, M.K.S., et al., The Fleischmann-Pons phenomenon – a different perspective. Fusion Technol., 1992. 22: p. 395. |
| Rout, R.K., et al., Copious low energy emissions from palladium loaded with hydrogen or deuterium. Indian J. Technol., 1991. 29: p. 571. |
| Rout, R.K., et al., Detection of high tritium activity on the central titanium electrode of a plasma focus device. Fusion Technol., 1991. 19: p. 391. |
| Rout, R.K., et al. Phenomenon of Low Energy Emission from Hydrogen/Deuterium Loaded Palladium. in Third International Conference on Cold Fusion, “Frontiers of Cold Fusion”. 1992. Nagoya Japan: Universal Academy Press, Inc., Tokyo, Japan. |
| Rout, R.K., et al., Update on observation of low-energy emissions from deuterated and hydrated palladium. Indian J. Technol., 1993. 31: p. 551. |
| Rout, R.K., et al., Reproducible, anomalous emissions from palladium deuteride/hydride. Fusion Technol., 1996. 30: p. 273. |
| Sankaranarayanan, M., et al. Investigation of Low Level Tritium Generation in Ni-H2O Electrolytic Cells. in ICCF4, Fourth International Conference on Cold Fusion. 1993. Lahaina, Maui: Electric Power Research Institute 3412 Hillview Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94304. |
| Sankaranarayanan, T.K., et al. Evidence for Tritium Generation in Self-Heated Nickel Wires Subjected to Hydrogen Gas Absorption/Desorption Cycles. in 5th International Conference on Cold Fusion. 1995. Monte-Carlo, Monaco: IMRA Europe, Sophia Antipolis Cedex, France. |
| Sankaranarayanan, T.K., et al., Investigation of low-level tritium generation in Ni-H2O electrolytic cells. Fusion Technol., 1996. 30: p. 349. |
| Shrikhande, V.K., et al. Preliminary Results on the Variation of Electrical Resistance of TiDx Wire With Deuterium Concentration. in 5th International Conference on Cold Fusion. 1995. Monte-Carlo, Monaco: IMRA Europe, Sophia Antipolis Cedex, France. |
| Shyam, A., et al. Observation of High Multiplicity Bursts of Neutrons During Electrolysis of Heavy Water with Palladium Cathode Using the Dead-Time Filtering Technique. in 5th International Conference on Cold Fusion. 1995. Monte-Carlo, Monaco: IMRA Europe, Sophia Antipolis Cedex, France. |
| Srinivasan, M., et al. Statistical Analysis of Neutron Emission in Cold Fusion Experiments. in The First Annual Conference on Cold Fusion. 1990. University of Utah Research Park, Salt Lake City, Utah: National Cold Fusion Institute. |
| Srinivasan, M., et al. Observation of Tritium in Gas/Plasma Loaded Titanium Samples. in Anomalous Nuclear Effects in Deuterium/Solid Systems, “AIP Conference Proceedings 228”. 1990. Brigham Young Univ., Provo, UT: American Institute of Physics, New York. |
| Srinivasan, M., Nuclear fusion in an atomic lattice: An update on the international status of cold fusion research. Curr. Sci., 1991. 60: p. 417. |
| Srinivasan, M., et al. Tritium and Excess Heat Generation During Electrolysis of Aqueous Solutions of Alkali Salts With Nickel Cathode. in Third International Conference on Cold Fusion, “Frontiers of Cold Fusion”. 1992. Nagoya Japan: Universal Academy Press, Inc., Tokyo, Japan. |