(nuclear power) Uranium-235 is the most important material required (for fission and energy production)

(nuclear power)

Uranium-235 is the most important material required (for fission and energy production) 

Researcher  and author: Dr.   (   Afshin Rashid)

Note: Uranium-235 is the most important material required for a nuclear reactor (for fission and energy production). But the problem is that the uranium extracted from the mine is a combination of different isotopes, including two important and stable isotopes, uranium 235 and uranium 238. 

So that the share of isotope 235 in this mixture is about seven tenths of percent, and for it to be used in the nuclear industry, its concentration must be between 2 and 5 percent, so it is necessary to enrich it. Uranium isotopes can be separated to increase the ratio of one isotope over the other. This process is called enrichment. Connecting a series of gas centrifuges in an enrichment plant A centrifuge is a device used to separate substances from each other based on their weight. This device circulates materials around an axis at a high speed, and the materials move away from the axis according to their weight. In fact, in this method, acceleration due to centrifugal force is used to separate materials from each other. The general use of this device is to separate liquid from liquid or liquid from solid. Centrifuges used for uranium enrichment have a special mode that is prepared for gas, which is called Hyper-Centrifuge.

Before scientists used this method to enrich uranium, they used a special technology called Gaseous Diffusion. The cylinder's fast rotation centrifuge produces a very strong centrifugal force, during which the heavier molecules (those containing the isotope uranium 238) are moved away from the center of the axis of rotation, and on the contrary, those that have lighter molecules (containing the isotope (uranium 235) are more around are placed on the axis of the centrifuge. In the enrichment of uranium by the gas centrifuge method, a large number of rotating cylinders are used that are placed together in parallel and in series. Uranium enrichment is a process by which in a mass of natural uranium, the amount of isotope 235U is more and the amount Reduce the isotope 238U. Uranium enrichment is one step of the nuclear fuel cycle. Natural uranium (which is in the form of uranium oxide) contains 99.3% of the isotope 238U and 0.7% of 235U. Uranium isotope 235U is fissile and suitable for bombs and nuclear power plants. The nuclear fuel cycle consists of various processes that lead to the transformation of "uranium ore" into the fuel used in nuclear power plants. The set of these stages is called the nuclear fuel cycle, of which uranium enrichment is one of its stages.

Conclusion : 

Uranium-235 is the most important material required for a nuclear reactor (for fission and energy production). But the problem is that the uranium extracted from the mine is a combination of different isotopes, including two important and stable isotopes, uranium 235 and uranium 238. 

Researcher  and author: Dr.   (   Afshin Rashid)

Specialized doctorate in nano-microelectronics