Breeder reactors create plutonium 239 as a byproduct of splitting uranium 235, producing more fuel than it uses. Fast breeder reactors use liquid sodium to keep neutrons at a higher energy level, which are absorbed by uranium 238 to create plutonium 239. However, the use of plutonium for nuclear weapons and the complex and expensive process of extracting it has led to the decline of breeder reactors.
A breeder reactor is a type of nuclear reactor that uses nuclear fission to create plutonium 239 atoms as a byproduct of splitting uranium 235 atoms. This process creates more fuel in the form of plutonium 239 than it uses. This ability to create, or “farm,” additional fuel explains the name given to these types of reactors. A fast breeder reactor can create up to 30% more fuel than it consumes.
Nuclear reactors produce energy by splitting the atoms of fissile fuels, usually uranium 235. This also produces free neutrons, particles from the nucleus of atoms, which then strike other uranium atoms, splitting them and furthering the fission reaction. In standard nuclear reactors, most of these neutrons are kept at a low energy level by an advanced cooling system that normally uses water as the medium. This is done to keep the neutrons at a suitable energy level to sustain the fission reaction.
In a fast breeder reactor, the cooling system is purposely less efficient and is usually filled with liquid sodium. This keeps the neutrons produced by the fission reaction at a higher energy level. These “fast” neutrons provide the other part of the common name of a fast breeder reactor. The high-energy neutrons are less suitable for splitting other uranium 235 atoms, but they serve another purpose.
Instead of splitting the uranium 235 atoms, the “fast” neutrons are absorbed by the uranium 238 atoms, which make up the bulk of the nuclear reactor fuel mass in a breeder reactor. Uranium 238 is not suitable for fission, but after absorbing another neutron, uranium 238 is converted to plutonium 239. Plutonium 239 is very suitable as nuclear fuel and can be used to make nuclear weapons. Some atoms of plutonium 239 decay into another isotope of uranium, uranium 239 which is also used as fuel in nuclear reactors.
Plutonium is often used for nuclear weapons. For this reason, many breeder reactors that were once operational have been shut down. Other problems with these types of reactors have contributed to their decline in popularity among nations with nuclear power programs. Plutonium-239 has to be extracted from the other components of nuclear fuel and this is a complex and expensive process. It can also be extremely dangerous and creates toxic radioactive waste as a by-product.
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