Most nuclear power stations use uranium enriched to 3%
uranium-235 isotope. The nuclear power stations in France include
some reprocessed plutonium mixed with the enriched uranium.
A small number of nuclear power stations were designed with fast
neutron breeder reactors and used uranium enriched to as much as
93.7% uranium-235 isotope. As more of the uranium-238 (or
thorium-232) in the breeding blanket was transmuted to fissionable
plutonium (or uranium) isotopes, the breeding blanket material
would be reprocessed and these fissionable isotopes would be used
to replace the original spent uranium. But only a small number of
such nuclear power stations were built and the system for
reprocessing of the breeding blanket material was not set up.