The nuclear fuel cycle begins with the mining of uranium ore. This video will discuss the steps involved in getting uranium from its ore to the uranium used in a nuclear reactor.

Please watch the video below for an overview of the mining and processing of uranium.

The following diagrams give you a visual of the information discussed in the video.

Milling Process

Image Source: The National Academies Press

Gaseous Diffusion

Source: Atomic Heritage Foundation

Gas Centrifuge

Source: Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Laser Separation

Sources:

Backgrounder on uranium enrichment | nrc.gov. (n.d.). https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/enrichment.html.

F. G. Gosling, The Manhattan Project: Making the Atomic Bomb (DOE/MA-0001; Washington: History Division, Department of Energy, January 1999), 5-6.

Hore-Lacy I , Uranium Mining, Processing, and Enrichment, Reference Module in Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences, Elsevier, 2013. 11-Sep-13 doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-409548-9.01357-9.

Marcum, W. and Spinrad, . Bernard I. (2019, September 5). Nuclear reactor. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/technology/nuclear-reactor

"4 Uranium Mining, Processing, and Reclamation." National Research Council. 2012. Uranium Mining in Virginia: Scientific, Technical, Environmental, Human Health and Safety, and Regulatory Aspects of Uranium Mining and Processing in Virginia. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13266.