Comments on “Thermal behavior of polarized Pd/D electrodes prepared by co-deposition”

Szpak et al. have published a report [S. Szpak, P.A. Mosier-Boss, M.H. Miles, M. Fleischmann, Thermal behavior of polarized Pd/D electrodes prepared by co-deposition, Thermochim. Acta 410 (2004) 101] that attempts to present more evidence for the nuclear nature of the Fleischmann-Pons (-Hawkins) effect, and in that process attempt to reject recombination as the alternative cause of their observations. Unfortunately, they have misunderstood the at-the-electrode, under-the-surface recombination issue. This paper presents the basics of this model, including what physical conditions could produce a calibration constant shift and what might cause those conditions to arise. The new evidences are discussed and it is shown that the possibility of at-the-electrode recombination cannot be eliminated; in fact prior photographic evidence is shown to be reasonable evidence of this phenomenon. Thus in the absence of definitive data, the conclusion that apparent excess heat arises from a nuclear cause is premature.