The rivalry between China and the United States is not only freed in markets or The tariffs. It is also played In the field of energy. And, in full rise of artificial intelligence, Donald Trump has decided that the way to ensure abundant and stable electricity for military bases, laboratories and data centers will be through nuclear energy. His plan is as ambitious as controversial.
An explosive plan. The Trump administration has sought to quadruple the nuclear production of the country. To do this, the White House wants the new reactors not to depend solely on fresh uranium, but also on recycled fuel from radioactive waste and the military plutonium surplus dismantled eyelets.
As Washington Post explainedit is an “national security imperative.” The idea is simple: guarantee a stable supply for the most sensitive infrastructure, from military bases to AI data centers, without depending on the electricity or imported fuels.
The recycling now an ally. THE ENERGY DEPARTMENT has identified in its inventories All uranium and useful plutonium to reconvert it in fuel. Among them is the plutonium from dismantled weapons, one of the most dangerous materials on the planet.
To make it possible, startups like oklo and curio They work in piroprocessinga method that introduces fuel bars spent on molten salts and uses electricity to separate the usable components. Unlike the chemical processes used in the past, these companies ensure that the technique is safer, more economical and less polluting. In addition, Oklo, backed by Sam Altman, founder of Openai, has announced an investment of almost 1.7 billion dollars in an advanced fuel center in Oak Ridge (Tennessee), the same land where uranium was enriched The Manhattan project Eight decades ago.
Only the tip of the iceberg. A couple of months ago, in one of the executive orders signed by Trump forced the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) To complete any reactor license in 18 months, when until now the process could take more than a decade. The White House also ordered to rewrite the rules of radiation exposure, considered “excessively cautious.”
The official statement issued in May established specific deadlines: The Army must operate a reactor at a national base before September 2028, and the energy department will have to inaugurate at least one advanced reactor in any of its facilities in 30 months to supply AI data centers. To this is added the release of 20 tons of Haleu (high -rehearsal low enrichment uranium) for new reactors and the intention of signing 20 international nuclear cooperation agreements in the current congress.
The depth of the matter. Despite political and business enthusiasm, the scientific community contrasts with reality. Ross Matzkin-Bridger, exassor of the Department of Energy, He pointed out that it is “The same technologies that developed and rejected decades ago”, with the same background problems. The MIT physicist and former secretary of Energy, Ernest Moniz, It was more blunt: recycling plutonium of arms not only makes nuclear energy more expensive, but also “threatens to create material that can be used in pumps.”
Along the same lines, Matthew Bunn, from Harvard, considers it unrealistic to think that public opinion accepts reprocessing plants that would also require their own waste deposit. And Frank von Hippel, from Princeton, recalled that the US has already abandoned civil recycling at the time of Jimmy Carter, after India used that technology To manufacture your first bomb.
Not everything is warnings. For the White House, nuclear recycling is a strategic tool. The official statement insists that AI data centers and military facilities need “Dense energy sources, safe and resistant. ”
Also, defenders such as Bradley Williams, from the National Laboratory of Idaho, They argue that using recycled plutonium It could become a need to guarantee sufficient fuel. And startups ensure that new processes include safeguards that prevent reuse of that material for military purposes.
The weight of waste. The matter is even broader because the country already accumulates about 90,000 metric tons of fuel spent, stored in containers in active and dismantled plants, According to The Washington Post. Recycling part of that material would relieve a dilemma that has been resolved decades.
Meanwhile, the private sector tries to position itself. Oklo signed a contract with Switchdata centers operator, to build modular reactors that contribute up to 12 GW before 2044. The company promises to open its first reactor, Aurorain 2027, although the agreement is not binding and the NRC rejected its previous application in 2022.
The idea of recycling is not unique. More countries have found in this method in a way to find a more source without depending on other countries as the case of Francewhich does so through subsidies and strict security measures. For its part, Japan accumulate delays and cost overruns In its Rokkash Plant, which has not yet produced fuels after decades of development.
At the opposite end, United Kingdom decided to abandon the idea of recycling. With about 140 tons of stored civil plutonium, he has chosen to immobilize him in a solid and stable way to bury him in a deep geological warehouse in Sellafield. Something similar occurs in Spain, which has reactivated his plan For a deep geological warehouse, planned for 2073, and in the meantime use containers such as Hi-Storm FW for intermediate storage.
The contrast is evident: while some countries try to give new life to waste, others bury them forever. Everyone looks for the same: prevent nuclear legacy from becoming an eternal problem.
Forecasts. The United States is committed to resuscitating old nuclear recycling technologies to sustain its energy safety and the AI career. The defenders see it as a historical opportunity to reduce foreign dependence and give new use to forgotten materials. Critics fear that the same failures and risks of half a century are repeated.
The experience invites prudence: the last reactors connected in the USA, In the Vogtle (Georgia) plantthey arrived seven years late and 17,000 million dollars of extra cost.
Image | Oklo and Kelly Michals
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings