Kinetic investigation of the hydrolysis of uranium hexafluoride gas

Abstract

UF₆ is commonly employed in enrichment technologies and is known to react rapidly with water vapor to form radioactive particulates and hydrofluoric acid vapor. The kinetics of the UF₆ hydrolysis reaction have been observed directly for the first time. The rate appears to be half order and second order for UF₆ and water, respectively, with a rate constant of 1.19 ± 0.22 Torr^−3/2 s⁻¹. The proposed mechanism involves formation of the [UF₆·2H₂O] adduct via two separate reactions.