Re:The Spaceline: a space elevator alternative achievable wi...
by LorenPechtel on Friday September 06, 2019 @02:00PM
(#20898038)
Nuclear waste isn't a big deal. After reprocessing what's left will decay to ambient in 10,000 years. Every major proposal for how to deal with it will have no problem storing that.
If you're scared about plutonium from reprocessing there are two things:
1) Reactor fuel has been in the reactor for too long. It's going to have far too much Pu-240. Reactors don't care, bombs do. You can't make a reliable bomb if you have too much Pu-240.
2) Deliberately leave hot stuff in the reprocessed fuel. So long as it's not a neutron absorber the reactor won't care. However, it will leave the fuel deadly hot. The industry has the equipment to handle it (after all, it's no hotter than the spent fuel they are removing), the terrorist does not. Nobody's smuggling it out because they won't live to accomplish it, not to mention that it will set off alarms from far away.
If you're scared about plutonium from reprocessing there are two things:
1) Reactor fuel has been in the reactor for too long. It's going to have far too much Pu-240. Reactors don't care, bombs do. You can't make a reliable bomb if you have too much Pu-240.
2) Deliberately leave hot stuff in the reprocessed fuel. So long as it's not a neutron absorber the reactor won't care. However, it will leave the fuel deadly hot. The industry has the equipment to handle it (after all, it's no hotter than the spent fuel they are removing), the terrorist does not. Nobody's smuggling it out because they won't live to accomplish it, not to mention that it will set off alarms from far away.