| From: | "Paul J. Adam" <shadowtk@********.DEMON.CO.UK> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Re: explanation |
| Date: | Mon, 9 Dec 1996 22:18:55 +0000 |
Neidengard" <mneideng@****.CALTECH.EDU> writes
>Now, there was that Shiawase incident on the list a while back; was that
>supposed to be a fusion plant or what?
Had to be a fusion plant if Maxim could extract plutonium from the waste
products (probably spent fuel rods). A fission plant (for those who
don't know) burns U-235 and Pu-240, breaking the atoms up and releasing
energy: the U-238 in the fuel absorbs neutrons to become Pu-239, which
is what you use most effectively to make fission bombs with. You can
take the spent or part-spent fuel rods and extract the plutonium: that's
what Hanford and Sellafield are for.
Fusion plants would produce helium as a byproduct, and moderately
radioactive waste from the linings of the reactor vessel: nothing you
could make a big bang from.
>Yeah, I am a little interested as to what AlexandriaN has attempted to buy
>as well, but the "nuclear" thing hit one of his search agent's hotlist and
>he's in a position to do at least a little speculative buying. Plus, if the
>info isn't worth much, it'll go into the seller's file...
Ditto for SIGA. The word "nuclear" produces a sort of Pavlovian reaction
:) And, again, InfoScholar's credibility rating is on the line here.
--
There are four kinds of homicide: felonious, excusable, justifiable and
praiseworthy...
Paul J. Adam paul@********.demon.co.uk
