How lasers could help provide fuel for nuclear reactors
Global Laser Enrichment is developing a new laser-based technology to reprocess uranium waste into fuel for nuclear reactors. This method could provide a more efficient and cost-effective supply chain for the next generation of nuclear power plants.
Why it matters
Advancements in fuel enrichment are critical for the scalability of nuclear energy as a low-carbon power source.
Companies are developing new enrichment technology that could unlock previously overlooked resources.
Outside the small town of Paducah, Kentucky, a wealth of uranium is locked away in thousands of storage cylinders filled with waste material from a now-closed nuclear enrichment facility. Lasers could help get it out.
A company called Global Laser Enrichment (GLE) is looking to reprocess this old material with a new technology called laser enrichment. It could be more efficient than conventional enrichment methods, allowing the company to refresh the material and produce feedstock at the same concentration as a natural mined source. And in the future, the company claims, laser enrichment could be used to make material for nuclear fuel, including the kind used in advanced reactors.
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