FIND: McGuire Nuclear Station, Units 1 and 2

Preliminary performance of a cw chemical laser is described. Hydrogen is diffused into a supersonic stream containing F atoms. Population inversion is due to the reaction H2 + F → HF(v) + H, ΔH = -31.7 kcal/mol, v = 1,2. An atomic F flow rate of 0.030 moles/sec has produced 475 W of laser power. This represents 12 percent of the chemical energy involved in the above reaction. Zero power gain is 8 percent/cm. Spectroscopic observations of laser transitions are included