Re:Turkish police seize 1.4 kg of radioactive californium in...
by eesmith on Monday March 19, 2018 @02:52PM
(#16621795)
To add to that, https://www.metalary.com/californium-price/ says "Since the discovery of californium in 1950, scientists have only succeeded in producing just 8 grams of californium-252."
Wikipedia has a picture of the 50 ton container used to transport up to 1 gram of californium-252 safely, at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Californium#/media/File:CfShie... .
Red mercury doesn’t exist.
Californium isn’t used in nuclear warheads, it’s a neutron source with a short half-life. As such it can be used to startup a reactor, or more typically in neutron diffraction spectroscopy.
1.4 kilos of Califorium? No.
Microgram quantities of californium-252 are available for commercial use through the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.[50] Only two sites produce californium-252: the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the United States, and the Research Institute of Atomic Reactors in Dimitrovgrad, Russia. As of 2003, the two sites produce 0.25 grams and 0.025 grams of californium-252 per year, respectively.[54]
High purity aluminum is not controlled, is used in aerospace and electronics, and while it would have applications in enriching Uranium, so do concrete and steel.
The entire article is a farce.