Question

${{H}_{2}}{{O}_{2}}$ and heavy water was discovered by respectively:
(A)- Thenard, Urey
(B)- Urey, Rutherford
(C)- Aston, Urey
(D)- Aston, Chadwick

Answer 1

Hint: The peroxide is a compound with an oxygen-oxygen single bond. The simplest peroxide that exists is the hydrogen peroxide $({{H}_{2}}{{O}_{2}})$. A form of water that contains only deuterium or D is known as heavy water ${{(}^{2}}{{H}_{2}}O)$ .

Complete step by step answer:
-Hydrogen peroxide is a very pale blue, slightly more viscous than water liquid with a chemical formula ${{H}_{2}}{{O}_{2}}$ .
-Hydrogen peroxide in its concentrated form is a very reactive oxygen species which has been used as a propellant in rocketry. The high reactivity of hydrogen peroxide is due to unstable peroxide bonds.
-Hydrogen peroxide is highly unstable and slowly decomposes in the presence of sunlight. Because of the high stability of hydrogen peroxide, it is stored with a stabilizer in a weakly acidic solution.
-In 1799, barium peroxide was the first synthetic peroxide reported by Alexander von Humboldt as a by-product of his attempts to decompose air. Further, after 19 years barium peroxide was used for the preparation of hydrogen peroxide by Louis Jacques Thenard which he earlier named as ‘oxygenated water’.
-In 1931, the US scientist and Nobel laureate Harold Urey discovered the deuterium isotope of hydrogen. Urey was later able to concentrate deuterium in water. In 1933, Urey’s mentor Gilbert Newton Lewis isolated the first sample of heavy water using electrolysis.
So, the correct answer is “Option A”.

Note: Hydrogen peroxide is used as an oxidizer, an antiseptic, and a bleaching agent. Hydrogen peroxide is also found in the human biological systems. The enzymes which can use or decompose hydrogen peroxide are known as peroxidases. Heavy water in exposure for long terms to various life forms can cause toxicity. 25% deuteration causes irreversible sterility in mice, rats, and dogs. Mammals on drinking heavy water for up to a week show 50% deuteration in their body which is fatal.