gaseous diffusion

noun

, Chemistry.

1. the passage of gas through microporous barriers, a technique used for isotope separation, especially in the preparation of fuel for nuclear reactors.

Word History and Origins

Origin of gaseous diffusion¹

First recorded in 1845–50

Example Sentences

Without New Deal programs like the Tennessee Valley Authority or the Grand Coulee Dam, the U.S. might have lacked the surplus electricity to smelt the aluminum required for the 300,000 military aircraft it produced in the war, or to generate power for the enormous gaseous diffusion plants necessary for building the atomic bomb.

From Salon

Once the 1,800 workers finish dismantling the old gaseous diffusion facility outside Piketon, there will be even fewer good-paying jobs and reasons to stay, said Billy Spencer, who has been the town’s mayor for 20 years and worked as a security guard at the plant for 38 years before that.

From New York Times

In the 1950s, as the nuclear era began in earnest, Piketon became the site of one of two enormous enrichment facilities in the Ohio River Valley region, where a process called gaseous diffusion was used.

From New York Times

Meanwhile, the Soviet Union developed centrifuges in a secret program, relying on a team of German physicists and engineers captured toward the end of World War II. Its centrifuges proved to be 20 times as energy efficient as gaseous diffusion.

From New York Times

The centrifuge plant in Piketon, operated by Centrus Energy, occupies a corner of the site of the old gaseous diffusion facility.

From New York Times