Timeline for How rapidly can small nuclear weapons be produced?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
11 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Nov 2, 2021 at 3:27 | comment | added | Loren Pechtel | But why would any isotope of Californium be present in nuclear waste to any appreciable degree? | |
| Nov 1, 2021 at 4:56 | comment | added | Ash | @LorenPechtel I'm not saying you make any particular non-plutonium isotopes on purpose but if they're already present in nuclear waste material, which they will be because even breeder reactors that are aimed at Pu-239 produce over run isotopes, then in a world that is using party popper nukes like wedding confetti it may be worth purifying short-lived, low critical mass, isotopes that we don't use because of their instability. | |
| Oct 31, 2021 at 22:36 | comment | added | Loren Pechtel | You don't purify Californium, you produce it by neutron bombardment starting with U-238. Note that in the process you go through Pu-239. The steps past Pu-239 waste far more than the higher critical mass of Pu-239. | |
| Oct 31, 2021 at 10:41 | vote | accept | KEY_ABRADE | ||
| Oct 31, 2021 at 6:27 | comment | added | Ash | @LorenPechtel I wasn't thinking of Californium as a sole fuel rather thinking of it as an example of a material you wouldn't generally use for weapons that may be worth purifying if you're not planning to stockpile your nukes for any great length of time. | |
| Oct 31, 2021 at 6:22 | history | edited | Ash | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
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| Oct 31, 2021 at 3:43 | comment | added | Loren Pechtel | Production of that Cf-251 is going to be an issue. You have 13 neutron captures with a yield well under 1%. And what's the temperature of the core??? | |
| Oct 30, 2021 at 5:30 | history | edited | Ash | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
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| Oct 30, 2021 at 5:29 | comment | added | Ash | @KEY_ABRADE Shelf life depends on the effect of decay on the continued viability of the weapon, not just loss of fuel but the activity of it's daughter isotopes etc... | |
| Oct 30, 2021 at 5:26 | comment | added | KEY_ABRADE | 898 years is still pretty good, IMO. Most of these things are going to be fired within a year of assembly. | |
| Oct 30, 2021 at 5:23 | history | answered | Ash | CC BY-SA 4.0 |