The academician predicts a complete abandonment of the use of uranium and plutonium in nuclear energy
The world will soon abandon uranium and plutonium in favor of thorium. This was stated today by the President of the Kurchatov Institute, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Evgeny Velikhov, speaking at a meeting of the Advisory Scientific Council of the Skolkovo Foundation, which was held at the Sevastopol State University.
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“The global nuclear energy industry in the future will switch from the uranium and plutium cycle to the thorium cycle. This will lead to a huge advantage. The most important advantage is that thorium, when mined, is not radioactive at all, unlike uranium. Its reworking is currently under discussion. There is great potential here for using Skolkovo,” Velikhov said.
Thorium is an element of group III of the periodic table, belonging to the actinides; heavy, slightly radioactive metal. Thorium is found primarily in 12 minerals. Deposits of these minerals are known in Australia, India, Norway, USA, Canada, South Africa, Brazil, Pakistan, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Kyrgyzstan and other countries.
Academician predicts complete phase-out of uranium and plutonium in nuclear energy