China’s New Breeder Reactors May Produce More Than Just Watts
Cars That Think
DECEMBER 28, 2022
Fast neutrons—that is, ones with 1 megaelectron-volt or more of kinetic energy—split the plutonium atoms, releasing secondary neutrons that are captured by the U-238 and convert some of that U-238 into plutonium. Breeder reactors use plutonium as the fissile fuel in the core, which is surrounded by a blanket rich in U-238.
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