New Production of Plutonium 238

Saeed al-Sahaf writes "According to the New York Times (login req, but you can google for it as well), the Bush administration is planning the government's first production of plutonium 238 since the cold war. Federal officials say the program would produce a total of 330 pounds over 30 years at the Idaho National Laboratory. Officials denied that any of the classified missions would involve nuclear arms, satellites or weapons in space, but rather would power 'secret espionage devices.' Plutonium 238 has no central role in nuclear arms. Instead, it is valued for its steady heat, which can be turned into electricity. Nuclear batteries made of it are best known for powering spacecraft that go where sunlight is too dim to energize solar cells. For instance, they now power the Cassini probe exploring Saturn and its moons."

Comments

Reg Free Link to Article

[JustAnotherBob]

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/27/politics/27nuke. html?ex=1277524800&en=d2a4c8d306596edf&ei=5090&par tner=rssuserland&emc=rss

Spacecraft RTGs

[justanyone]

Sounds like this is used to power Radioisotope Thermal Generators. this is a very good thing; we need more experience with RTGs to power spacecraft, both nearby (spy satellites) and far (science missions). It's the only power we can generate when we're beyond Mars orbit (solar cells are much less effective the farther you get from the Sun.

My wife brought up the pollution aspect - not from polluting outer space (I explained already about the fact that space is far more radioactive than the plutonium is, we're not 'polluting' space). Rather, the Hanford (Washington State USA) processing facility created / processed lots of plutonium during the cold war and ended up creating massive environmental damage with radionucleides in the groundwater, soil, etc.

Where exactly is this processing plant and is the DOD allowing the EPA to supervise environmental maintenance/protection?

(Note: I don't care where it is; if telling me hurts security that's fine I don't need to know, but I don't want this kind of a plant showing up next door to me without someone having filed an environmental impact statement).

secret missions

[lowrydr310]

Project managers say that most if not all of the new plutonium is intended for secret missions and they declined to divulge any details.

Secret Missions? Come on, we all know that plutonium is the perfect fuel to produce the 1.21 Jigawatts that our flux capacitors need.

Re:Also good practice for breeder reactors?

[Phase Shifter]

Nuclear power really won't take you very far unless you use breeder reactors. About 40 years by some estimates.

I've heard that if the existing weapons-grade plutonium were converted to reactor fuel (by "diluting" it with other isotopes) we would have enough to last 250 years.

BTW, don't you mean breeder reactors produce Pu-239 instead of Pu-238? I've never heard of Pu-238 being used for fission before.

How much is that?

[Profane MuthaFucka]

330 pounds of plutonium occupies a volume of about 7.5 liters.

Re:How much is that?

[Profane MuthaFucka]

None. Pu-238 isn't bomb material.

MOD parent up

[benjamindees]

That's right. Other than for the benefits in powering espionage/space devices, this move could be laying the groundwork for full scale Pu238 production, to mix with Pu239 (from fast breeders), as a deterrent to the use of Pu239 for weapons. The world will need breeders soon, and neutralizing their potential for weapons use will be a priority.