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Candu reactors have traditionally used natural uranium, which contains 0.7 percent U-235, which is the fissile isotope that produces all the nuclear fission energy. Proposals have been made that Candus could use fuel that has been discharged from light water reactors and might still contain about 0.9 percent U-235, or could even use fuel made from depleted uranium (mostly U-238) together with fissile plutonium available from dismantled nuclear weapons, but I don't think such proposals have reached the stage of implementation. For one thing, Canada doesn't have any nuclear weapons, so it would require some fuel manufacture to be set up in the US to make this fuel, or to utilise US spent fuel. There is plenty of this in US storage but no route for using it to make Candu fuel, which is of different dimensions and assembly details. However this might conceivably be done in the future.
Wiki User
∙ 14y ago
Wiki User
∙ 12y agoCANDU reactors work now with natural uranium; but alternates are possible: low enriched uranium, added plutonium or uranium-233.
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What type of nuclear reactor is used in Ontario to produce electricity?
This is the Candu type, which was uniquely developed in Canada to use heavy water moderator and natural uranium fuel
Which isotope of uranium is used in atomic reactors?
U-235 is the fissile isotope that produces the reactor power output in new fuel. During operation some of the U-238 is converted to plutonium which also contributes to the power of the reactor, an increasing amount as the U-235 is used up.
Which section of a nuclear reactor does nuclear fission occur?
The fission happens in the fuel, which is usually in fuel rods inside the reactor. The rods are spaced at a particular distance apart and fill the reactor.
Does a breeder reactor use uranium as a fuel?
Yes, it usually does. The new fuel is Plutonium (or sometimes Uranium-233 if Thorium was used in the blanket instead of Uranium). It is possible to configure a Breeder to consume more fuel than it is given, this has been considered one way to destroy excess weapons grade Plutonium.
What rods hold pellets of uranium?
Known as fuel rods, these are hollow metal rods that contain the uranium fuel for a nuclear reactor.
Does CANDU reactor use enriched uranium?
CANDU Reactors are specifically designed such that they do not require enriched uranium, and can operate entirely on naturally-occurring uranium. A CANDU design is generally used by parties that do not desire uranium enrichment facilities, due to the cost of those facilities. That said, a CANDU reactor CAN use enriched uranium, they are fully capable of supporting that fuel type.
Is nuclear an atomic fuel?
Fuel used in a nuclear reactor is uranium, the active isotope is uranium 235 which is fissile.
The fuel used in a nuclear reactor usually comes from?
Mines, usually it is uranium, with only 0.7% (aproximately) U-235 (the isotope that is used for fission), the rest is U-238, known as depleted uranium, or natural uranium. Then it enriched to about 3-5% U-235, unless it is used in a CANDU reactor, in which case it can almost literaly be used straight out of the ground.
What type of nuclear reactor is used in Ontario to produce electricity?
This is the Candu type, which was uniquely developed in Canada to use heavy water moderator and natural uranium fuel
What is Thorium breeder reacter?
In this type of nuclear reactor the fertile isotope thorium-232 is transformed in the fissile isotope uranium-233 and this act as a nuclear fuel.
Which isotope of uranium is used in atomic reactors?
U-235 is the fissile isotope that produces the reactor power output in new fuel. During operation some of the U-238 is converted to plutonium which also contributes to the power of the reactor, an increasing amount as the U-235 is used up.
Which section of a nuclear reactor does nuclear fission occur?
The fission happens in the fuel, which is usually in fuel rods inside the reactor. The rods are spaced at a particular distance apart and fill the reactor.
What is uranium used for in a nuclear reactor?
fuel
How is uranium-235 shipped to a reactor?
We see fuel shipped to nuclear reactors in what are called fuel bundles. These fuel bundles are comprised of a number of fuel elements, which can be round rods or flat plates. The individual elements are welded up to make the fuel bundle. The fuel bundle is packed in a very heavy and heavily armored container, and that fuel bundle is ready to be loaded into the core of a reactor during fueling. The fuel inside the fuel elements is usually uranium oxide (UO2), with U-235 as the primary isotope. This uranium has had its light isotope content lifted above what it would be naturally by a process called enrichment. The enriched uranium is oxidized to be turned into fuel. (The oxide of uranium will not burn as the pure metal would.)
What element is put into nuclear reactors for energy?
Reactors can be fueled by uranium or many of the transuranic elements, but uranium is the only element that occurs naturally with large enough levels of its fissionable isotope uranium-235 for practical use. Plutonium is also a good reactor fuel, but must be produced first from the plentiful but nonfissionable uranium-238 in a reactor as it only occurs naturally at trace levels. While thorium cannot be directly used as fuel, the fissionable isotope uraniuum-233 which can be used as fuel can be produced from it in a nuclear reactor. For transuranics other than plutonium (and maybe americium) specially designed fast neutron reactors are required to effectively use them as fuel, but they too can be used.
What is the name of the fuel used in the nuclear reactor?
Uranium
Does a breeder reactor use uranium as a fuel?
Yes, it usually does. The new fuel is Plutonium (or sometimes Uranium-233 if Thorium was used in the blanket instead of Uranium). It is possible to configure a Breeder to consume more fuel than it is given, this has been considered one way to destroy excess weapons grade Plutonium.
