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The Lifecycle

Nuclear Energy Lifecycle

The Lifecycle, explained

The Innovation Campus has three phases, beginning with uranium mining, then energy generation and ending with waste management. An Innovation Campus might host some or all of these stages.
Flowchart illustrating the process and stages of the nuclear fuel cycle from mining to disposal.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy

Stages

Mining & Milling

Front end

Uranium ore is extracted and processed into "yellowcake" — a concentrated uranium powder. 

Conversion

Front end

Yellowcake is chemically transformed into uranium hexafluoride (UF₆), a gas that can be enriched.

Enrichment

Back end

The amount of U-235 is increated to create fuel for nuclear reactors. Most of today’s reactors use fuel enriched to 3-5% uranium-235 while some advanced reactors require higher levels.

Fuel Fabrication

Front end

Enriched uranium is manufactured into fuel pellets then arranged into assemblies. Multiple assemblies go into a reactor.

Reactor Operations

Middle

Fuel is used to generate electricity or heat for industrial purposes. The Innovation Campus may host small modular reactors (SMRs) or microreactors rather than large traditional reactors.

Storage & Reprocessing

Back end

Used fuel is temporarily stored in pools, then transferred to dry casks. Reprocessing recovers usable uranium and plutonium from used fuel to provide new fuel for generating power.

Waste Management & Disposal

Back end

Low-level waste goes to licensed disposal sites. High-level waste requires long-term deep-geologic solutions still being developed nationally. The Innovation Campus would allow us to store and reprocess used nuclear fuel responsibly. 

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