The Most Important Element
Responses:
James Doran
Samarium is my most important element because of its high thermal neutron absorption cross section. It is produced from the decay of neodymium, a U-235 fission fragment. Samarium is known a a neutron poison. A poison is an element that essentially sucks up neutrons and limits the fission process. There are times, in fact, when neutron poisons can suck up so many neutrons that they literally shut a reactor down.