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Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
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Front-end nuclear fuel supply cooperation: Turning allied interdependence into strategic advantage
The global nuclear revival, which is fueled by unprecedented demand for firm, affordable, dispatchable power for artificial intelligence and data center build-out, energy security imperatives, and climate commitments, has exposed a structural reality of the Western fuel cycle: No single allied nation currently possesses the full suite of front-end capabilities. From mining through conversion, enrichment, fabrication, and the emerging deconversion and metallization steps required for reactor fuels, capability is distributed across Canada, France, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States (collectively, the “Sapporo Five”), as well as a small group of close partners.
S. R. Hatcher, H. K. Rae
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 10 | Number 4 | August 1961 | Pages 316-330
doi.org/10.13182/NSE61-A15373
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The formation of a colloidal suspension of hydrated aluminum oxide, Gibbsite or α-Al2O3 · 3D2O, in the heavy water of the NRU reactor is described, and compared with turbidity formation in other aluminum-water reactor systems. The observed corrosion rate of aluminum in NRU is consistent with a mass transfer mechanism involving the continuous dissolution of the corrosion product film. Two primary mechanisms for removing the dissolved aluminum from solution are postulated. These are direct crystallization onto deposits in the heat exchangers and direct crystallization onto Gibbsite particles in the water. The former effectively removes alumina from the system while the latter produces turbidity in the water. The rate of appearance of turbidity depends on its rate of formation and its rate of removal by the purification system. Turbidity is removed by filtration and adsorption in the ion-exchange columns and by evaporation. It is desirable to reduce the rate of formation of turbidity by choosing water conditions which minimize the solubility of the corrosion product film, rather than controlling the turbidity level by an adequate purification capacity.