Application of safeguards technologies in support of a bilateral treaty to reduce nuclear warheads

Conference · Tue Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1991 · Nuclear Materials Management. Annual Meeting Proceedings; (United States)

OSTI ID:5503181

Pillay, K K.S. ^[1]

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1. Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)

The recently concluded Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START){asterisk} between the US and the USSR is likely to lead to a reduction in the number of deployable warheads and delivery systems. One way of maintaining stability under this regime could be to control fissile materials within the defense complex of the parties involved and to assure separation of commercial and defense fuel cycles. A verifiable production scheme and a stable fissile material inventory can prevent a breakout and its consequences. Some of the well-established principles and practices of nuclear material safeguards can be brought to bear on this problem and help maintain a stable inventory of nuclear materials and indirectly a limit on the number of warheads. For the purpose of discussion, this paper assumes a treaty regime wherein a large number of deployed warheads will be dismantled under supervision and the disposal of recovered nuclear materials will be in a verifiable regime so that they may not reenter the weapons fuel cycle. This paper examines a pragmatic scenario for dismantling warheads so that the declared special nuclear material contents can be verified without compromising design information.

• OSTI ID: 5503181
• Report Number(s): CONF-910774--
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Nuclear Materials Management. Annual Meeting Proceedings; (United States) Journal Volume: 20
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

055000 -- Nuclear Fuels-- Safeguards
Inspection
& Accountability
350101* -- Arms Control-- Policy
Negotiations
& Legislation-- Treaties-- (1987-)
98 NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT, SAFEGUARDS, AND PHYSICAL PROTECTION
ARMS CONTROL
ASIA
CONTROL
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
EUROPE
FISSILE MATERIALS
FISSIONABLE MATERIALS
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS
NORTH AMERICA
NUCLEAR WEAPONS
RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL
RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT
SAFEGUARDS
TECHNOLOGY UTILIZATION
USA
USSR
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WEAPONS