GE-Hitachi has received approval from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to build a laser enrichment facility that, if successful, would be the first of its kind in the world.
While GEH has not made a decision whether to pursue the technology commercially, the company announced Tuesday that it was awarded an NRC license to build a plant producing up to 6 million separative work units in Wilmington, N.C.
It allows for enrichment up to 8 percent U-235 using lasers originally developed by Australia-based SILEX (Separation of Isotopes by Laser Excitation). According to the NRC, the project involves two phases – a test loop currently under construction and a commercial-scale plant. Both are sited at the existing GEH Global Nuclear Fuel-America facility. GEH applied for the license in 2009.
Enriching uranium hexafluoride with lasers offers the potential to create fuel for reactors in smaller facilities that use substantially less energy than other enrichment methods. The technology has been studied since the 1970s, but non-proliferation concerns, factors affecting the market for enrichment services and technical challenges have previously precluded the development of a commercial plant. (IEEE Spectrum offers a good summary of laser enrichment's development and technical aspects here.)