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Abstract

The substoichiometric uranium monocarbide UC_0.95 was hydrolyzed in acid medium at 80 °C. The composition of the products of hydrolysis corresponds to published data, but it correlates better with the stoichiometric composition of the hydrolyzable carbids. The mechanisms of the hydrolysis reaction are discussed and a modified radical mechanism is suggested based on the concept of initiation of the radical process by H. radicals formed owing to the nonstoichiometry of the substance. A relation is proposed for calculating the content of free hydrogen in the hydrolysis products of carbides of metal nature, for which a radical mechanism of their reaction with water can be assumed. Some effects occurring during the hydrolysis of uranium carbide, as described in literature, are explained in terms of the concept suggested, and the results obtained by the authors for carbides of manganese (Mn₇C₃) and for rare earth elements are discussed.