Plutonium disposal

A scientist from Sheffield University has developed a pioneering method of disposing safely of plutonium, the highly-dangerous, radioactive waste element used in most modern nuclear weapons.

There is currently no method for the safe disposal of unwanted plutonium that is generated during the production of nuclear energy. Until now, the world´s 1800 tonnes of unwanted plutonium, which exists largely in the form of spent fuel, has been kept in interim storage, with no way of disposing of it completely. This has caused a long-term waste management problem, as well as creating a potential security threat. Only a few kilograms of plutonium are needed to make a nuclear bomb.

But now, Prof Fergus Gibb and a team of researchers from the university´s Department of Engineering Materials, have successfully demonstrated that plutonium can be incorporated in a stable waste form and mixed with crushed granite, which is then partially melted and completely recrystallised under slow cooling conditions. This recrystallised rock can then be safely disposed of.