Laser separation of uranium chosen for scaleup

The Department of Energy has selected one of its advanced technologies under development for enriching uranium to go into large-scale engineering development and demonstration. The process selected is atomic vapor laser isotope separation (AVLIS), which is being developed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, Calif. This process edges out two competing technologies, molecular laser isotope separation under development at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico and plasma separation being developed by TRW Inc. in Redondo Beach, Calif. DOE will continue to support large-scale development of the AVLIS process until about 1990. It also will continue to support development of yet a fourth uranium enrichment technology, gas centrifugation. A gas centrifuge facility currently is under construction at Portsmouth, Ohio, and further technology development also is going on at each of three competing centrifuge manufacturing companies. By 1990, if all goes according to present plans, the most promising gas centrifuge technique will be compared to ...