| | 2 | Title: | Highly enriched uranium: Striking a balance | Add | | | Summary: | This Department of Energy study was designed to "present a complete picture of the production, acquisition, and utilization of highly enriched uranium (HEU)" (1). The opening summary includes a definition of HEU: "Uranium that has been enriched to uranium-235 isotopic content of 20 percent or more" (1). The Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program employs HEU in its reactor plants, including shipboard reactors and the training prototypes. Appendix F describes the factors that led to HEU's use in naval reactor plants, including the need for compact reactors and increased power output over time, along with the need for infrequent refueling or cores that last the lifetime of ship. A significant portion of the nation's HEU inventory (100 metric tons) is dedicated to the naval program's use. Additionally, the report notes that the reactor plant at the Shippingport Atomic Power Station (which had been decommissioned by the time of the report's publication) used HEU; the Naval Reactors organization led the design and construction of the Shippingport plant, which was "the first large-scale nuclear power electrical generating plant in the United States" (120). | | | | Source: | http://www.fas.org/sgp/othergov/doe/heu/index.html | | | | Date: | 2001 | | | | Subject(s): | Highly enriched uranium (HEU) | Naval Reactors | | | | Type: | Text | | | | Format: | PDF | | | | Similar items: | Find |
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