Two U.S. Reactors to Switch to Low-Enriched Uranium

The U.S. Energy Department is converting research reactors in Florida and Texas from using weapon-grade highly enriched uranium fuel to low-enriched uranium, the agency announced yesterday (see GSN, Aug. 2, 2004).

Conversion of reactors at the University of Florida and Texas A&M University is being conducted under the Global Threat Initiative’s Reduced Enrichment for Research and Test Reactors program.

“The Department of Energy is committed to reducing the threat posed by the availability of weapons-grade nuclear material here at home and around the world,” Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman said in a press release. “These research reactors are secure and used for peaceful purposes, but by converting them to use low-enriched uranium, we are taking a significant step forward to ensure that weapons-usable nuclear material does not fall into the wrong hands.”

The Energy Department plans to convert 25 research reactors by 2014; 11 have already been altered to use low-enriched uranium.

Conversion of the Florida and Texas reactors is scheduled to be completed in late 2006 (U.S. Energy Department release, April 11).

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