Nitric acid solutions containing plutonium were prepared and stored for various periods. The amount and composition of the gases generated by the a-radiation were then determined. The G (total gas) decreased from 0.20 to 0.02 as the HNO, concentration was increased from 1 M to lOM. The main products were H a and Oe. Hydrogen is formed by the radiolysis of H,O; its yield decreases with increasing HNOs concentration because the H atoms are more effectively scavenged by nitrate ions. Oxygen is formed by the catalytic decomposition of H,O,. The reaction of H,O, with HNO?, the main radiolysis product in HNO, solution, takes precedence over the decomposition as the HNOs concentration increases, thereby decreasing the 0, yield.

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