In a study carried out at Ben-Gurion University, it was proposed to add to the nuclear fuel an additive consisting of one of the basic components - americium. The additive is in a small amount, at a rate of about 0.1%, but this amount is sufficient to neutralize the plutonium
A group of researchers from the Department of Nuclear Engineering at Ben-Gurion University has developed a practical method for making the plutonium produced in nuclear power reactors unsuitable for use as a nuclear weapon.
The nuclear fuel found in nuclear power plants is characterized by two components (isotopes) of uranium. One of the components is fissile and the other is not fissile. However, the non-fissile element undergoes nuclear reactions in the nuclear reactor as a result of which part of the element turns into plutonium. Plutonium also includes fissile and non-fissile components. The amount of fissile elements created in nuclear power reactors is sufficient for it to be used as a nuclear weapon.
In a study carried out at Ben-Gurion University, it was proposed to add to the nuclear fuel an additive consisting of one of the basic components - americium. The additive is in a small amount, at a rate of about 0.1%, but this amount is sufficient to neutralize the plutonium. The americium undergoes nuclear processes in a reactor, following which it becomes an infissile component of plutonium. The amount of this component is sufficient for the plutonium produced in a nuclear power reactor to be unable to be used for the purposes of a nuclear weapon.
The researchers claim that if the nuclear fuel manufacturers add the additive to the fuel they market for nuclear reactors, it will not be possible to use the plutonium created in power reactors for nuclear weapons.
The research group from the Department of Nuclear Engineering at Ben-Gurion University includes Prof. Yigal Ronan, Dr. Eugene Schwagraus and Mr. Leonid Goland, and its findings are about to be published soon in the prestigious journal Science and Global Security.
Prof. Ronan: "In light of the fact that many countries in the Middle East such as Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Libya, Malaysia, Nigeria, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Principalities, and Yemen are interested in building nuclear power reactors, it is of great importance to neutralize the plutonium created in them" .
For more details, you can contact Prof. Yigal Ronan. Tel. 052-8795821.
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A hymn to Assaf -
There are smoke detectors based on americium (the isotope AM-241), so you have a serious link to prove this claim:
http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf57.html
I would use strontium if I wanted to develop a medical device for radiation therapy against cancer, Prof.
In any case, as far as I understand, you are right, of course, in your clarification regarding the fact that it is isotopes.
And as for the laboratory - I'll leave it to the better and wiser than me... In any case, I really like the research direction of Prof. Ronen and his team and keep my fingers crossed for them. An artist and an artist who will succeed and if they do succeed, it is worth a Nobel Prize in my opinion.
Smoke detectors have strontium 90 and not americium. Although it is also radioactive. The question of whether or not it is possible to assemble a bomb lies in which isotope of it you need, because also uranium, you need a specific isotope (235) and not "just" uranium. See you in the lab.
Americium itself is defined as a material that can be used to make a nuclear bomb. It has a critical mass of 60 kg. I wonder how many smoke detectors need to be disassembled to assemble a bomb according to this figure...
In short, I fear that the joy may be too early.
http://www.fissilematerials.org/ipfm/pages_us_en/fissile/fissile/fissile.php
Be careful not to add 0.004% tipping point to that 0.1% americium, it can become deadly on a planetary level.