I must have signed up to get notices from USPTO since neither the inventor nor the application is familiar.
Anyway – today this effort to Patent a particular concept for a LENR reactor was abandoned by Dan Steinberg, whoever that is - and the claimed operational mechanism appears to be strongly influenced by the low momentum neutron conjecture of Widom and Larsen. Perhaps there is some connection. No wonder that it was abandoned. These neutrons have yet to be documented yet the hypothesis lingers on. “Apparatus and Method for Low Energy Nuclear Reactions” https://patents.google.com/patent/US20130044847A1/en Abstract Provided are a method and apparatus for low energy nuclear reactions in hydrogen-loaded metals. A nickel cathode is disposed inside a pressure vessel loaded with heavy water. The vessel is heated to a temperature at which nickel oxide is reduced in the presence of hydrogen. The cathode is electrified, thereby producing hydrogen at the cathode, which removes any oxide layer on the nickel. The nickel can therefore more easily be loaded with hydrogen. The nickel cathode preferably has embedded particles of neutron-absorbing and/or hydrogen absorbing materials, such as boron-10… Boron-10 appears to be the key to this particular claim – and the reason is clear. This isotope has a cross-section for low energy neutrons of at least 3840 barns – “bigger than a barn” so to speak and if you believe W&L got it right – then this would have been your winning lotto ticket. Never mind that the claim was never “reduced to practice”… as they say in Crystal City. Unless that is – you are old enough to remember so called “Zip fuel” … <g>
