XPost: alt.politics.usa.republican, alt.war.nuclear, sac.politics
XPost: talk.politics.guns
On 04/06/2025 04:14, Al Newsom wrote:
https://ktla.com/news/nationworld/ap-international/ap-iran-has-amassed-ev en-more-near-weapons-grade-uranium-un-watchdog-says/
Something many people don't realise: to get 50kg of 90% enriched uranium
to make a bomb, you might start with 12,750 kg of natural uranium.
To enrich this to get 87.5kg of 60% takes 10,950 SWU or separative work
units, roughly speaking the amount of work the centrifuges have to do.
To enrich this 87.5kg of 60% to get 50 kg of 90% HEU takes another 110 SWU.
So by enriching natural uranium to 60% the Iranians have done 99% of the
work of separation needed to get 90% HEU, which is plenty rich enough
for a bomb.
Starting off with a stockpile of 450 kg of 60% HEU, they would easily
get at least enough 90% uranium for five bombs, possibly six or seven if
they used less HEU per bomb and/or did more separative work.
Peter Fairbrother
https://www.urenco.com/swu-calculator:
feed 0.71
out 60
tails 0.3
145.6 kg per kg EUP
125.493 swu per kg EUP
feed 60
out 90
tails 20
1.75 kg per kg EUP
2.24 swu per kg EUP
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