Nuclear material

Technical Report · Fri Mar 01 04:00:00 EST 1991

OSTI ID:5660201

Rezendes, V S

This paper reports that due to the shutdown of its nuclear production reactors at Savannah River, South Carolina, DOE has not manufactured tritium-a radioactive material used in nuclear weapons-since 1988. Projected U.S. defense tritium requirements have fallen dramatically as a result of anticipated nuclear weapons retirements. While DOE has recently made changes to its Savannah River restart and new production reactor programs, GAO believes that additional time is now available, if needed, to evaluate outstanding safety and environmental issues before restarting the Savannah River reactor and when the reactors should be restarted.

• Research Organization: General Accounting Office, Washington, DC (United States). Resources, Community and Economic Development Div.
• OSTI ID: 5660201
• Report Number(s): GAO/RCED-91-3
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS
220600 -- Nuclear Reactor Technology-- Research
Test & Experimental Reactors
220900* -- Nuclear Reactor Technology-- Reactor Safety
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
ENERGY SOURCES
ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS
FUELS
HYDROGEN ISOTOPES
IRRADIATION REACTORS
ISOTOPES
LIGHT NUCLEI
MATERIALS
NATIONAL DEFENSE
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUCLEAR FUELS
NUCLEAR WEAPONS
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
RADIOISOTOPES
REACTOR MATERIALS
REACTORS
SAFETY
SAVANNAH RIVER PLANT
TRITIUM
TRITIUM PRODUCTION REACTORS
US AEC
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
WEAPONS
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES