Uranium Life-Cycle Primer
Washington DC: United States Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration, 2009. Presumed First Edition, First printing. Spiral bound. iv, 30 pages. Illustrations (some in color). Maps. Footnote. Includes a section on Nuclear Fuel Cycle Terms. The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) maintains and enhances the safety, security, and effectiveness of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile without nuclear explosive testing; works to reduce the global danger from weapons of mass destruction; provides the U.S. Navy with safe and effective nuclear propulsion; and responds to nuclear and radiological emergencies in the U.S. and abroad. Established by the United States Congress in 2000, NNSA is a semi-autonomous agency within the United States Department of Energy. The National Nuclear Security Administration was created by Congressional action in 1999, in the wake of the Wen Ho Lee spy scandal and other allegations that lax administration by the Department of Energy had resulted in the loss of U.S. nuclear secrets to China. Originally proposed to be an independent agency, NNSA gained the reluctant support of the Clinton administration only after it was instead chartered as a sub-agency within the Department of Energy, to be headed by an administrator reporting to the Secretary of Energy. The purpose of this uranium life-cycle primer is to provide a detailed explanation of all facets of uranium processing, handling, and use 'from cradle to grave'. Both commercial and defense used of uranium are encompassed in this primer. The U.S. uranium life-cycle infrastructure was initiated with the Manhattan project in 1942. The most common isotopes in natural uranium are uranium-238 (which accounts for over 99%) and uranium-235. Uranium has the highest atomic weight of the primordially occurring elements. Its density is about 70% higher than that of lead, and slightly lower than that of gold or tungsten. It occurs naturally in low concentrations of a few parts per million in soil, rock and water, and is commercially extracted from uranium-bearing minerals such as uraninite. In nature, uranium is found as uranium-238 (99.2739–99.2752%), uranium-235 (0.7198–0.7202%), and a very small amount of uranium-234 (0.0050–0.0059%). Many contemporary uses of uranium exploit its unique nuclear properties. Uranium-235 is the only naturally occurring fissile isotope, which makes it widely used in nuclear power plants and nuclear weapons. However, because of the tiny amounts found in nature, uranium needs to undergo enrichment so that enough uranium-235 is present. Uranium-238 is fissionable by fast neutrons, and is fertile, meaning it can be transmuted to fissile plutonium-239 in a nuclear reactor. Condition: Very good.
Keywords: Uranium, Isotopes, Nuclear Fuel Cycle, Terms, Enrichment, Plutonium, Nuclear Facilities, Nuclear Weapons, Hexafluoride, Yellowcake, Depleted Uranium, Nuclear Reactor, HEU, Highly Enriched, Mining, Mills
[Book #73885]
Price: $45.00