Tag - plutonium

 
 

PLUTONIUM

Japan Times
EDITORIALS
Aug 6, 2020
Japan's stalled nuclear fuel cycle policy
While the disposal of the spent nuclear fuel is big challenge that must be tackled, it should not stop the government and the power industry from rethinking the costly fuel cycle program.
Japan Times
EDITORIALS
Feb 20, 2020
Review the nation's quest for a nuclear fuel cycle
The government and the power industry need to proceed with a long-overdue review of the the MOX nuclear fuel cycle policy.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 31, 2019
Japan's plutonium stockpile shrunk in 2018 due to use of MOX fuel for power generation, government reports
The nation's plutonium stockpile had shrunk as of the end of 2018 by about 1.6 tons from a year earlier, to 45.7 tons, reflecting increased plutonium thermal power generation, the Cabinet Office said Tuesday.
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 1, 2019
U.S. secretly shipped Cold War-era plutonium to Nevada, raising safety fears and riling lawmakers
The U.S. government secretly shipped a large amount of deadly plutonium from a South Carolina site that produced the radioactive metal for nuclear bombs during the Cold War to Nevada, the Trump administration revealed on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 31, 2018
Japan to cut plutonium stockpile amid international concerns
The government has decided to reduce its plutonium stockpile, in line with its principle of possessing only the amount necessary for peaceful use.
EDITORIALS
Jul 7, 2018
Reducing Japan's plutonium stock
Japan is under pressure to shrink its 47-ton stockpile of plutonium.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 4, 2017
Japan nuclear panel plans reduction in plutonium stockpile, but details remain unclear
The government has maintained a long-standing policy of reprocessing spent uranium fuel and reusing the extracted plutonium and uranium as reactor fuel.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2017
Amount of plutonium held by Japan falls slightly with reactor restarts
Japan's stockpile of plutonium kept inside and outside the country fell slightly at the end of 2016 from a year earlier with the restart of nuclear reactors using plutonium-uranium mixed oxide fuel, the Cabinet Office said Tuesday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 19, 2017
Plutonium found in urine of five workers exposed to radiation
A small amount of plutonium and americium was found in the urine of five workers exposed to radiation in an accident earlier this month at a nuclear research facility in Ibaraki Prefecture.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Jun 9, 2017
Declassified papers reveal U.S. held debate on Japan's nuclear ambitions in 1970s
Japan's push to establish a nuclear fuel recycling program and use the plutonium created in the process was the center of an intense debate in the U.S. government four decades ago, pitting those who wanted smooth relations with Tokyo against those who worried the plan might lead to the proliferation of sensitive nuclear technology and plutonium stockpiles.
JAPAN
Jun 8, 2017
Ibaraki plutonium exposures baffle Japanese nuclear experts
The cause of the plutonium inhalation accident in Ibaraki Prefecture might involve factors ranging from a helium buildup to procedural mistakes in checking containers.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 7, 2017
Four workers exposed to radioactive materials at Ibaraki nuclear facility
Four workers suffered internal radiation exposure due to inhalation of a large amount of plutonium during an inspection at a nuclear research facility in Ibaraki Prefecture on Tuesday, the operator of the facility said Wednesday.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
May 31, 2017
Commercial plutonium a bomb material
The usability of reactor-grade plutonium for weapons threatens the whole nuclear fuel-cycle concept of Japan's Council for Nuclear Fuel Cycle.
EDITORIALS
Dec 22, 2016
Review the failure of Monju
Before the government launches another expensive undertaking aimed at keeping its nuclear fuel cycle policy alive, it should first examine why the Monju fast-breeder project ended in failure.
JAPAN
Sep 21, 2016
End to breeder reactor, plutonium pile-up are twin problems for Japan's reprocessing policy
With the trouble-prone Monju fast-breeder reactor set to be scrapped and nuclear materials piling up, Japan's policy on reprocessing atomic fuel is becoming increasingly uncertain.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 15, 2016
U.S. institute warns Pyongyang may be 'significantly' upping nuclear bomb output
North Korea may be significantly expanding its nuclear weapons production and could have added six or more weapons to its stockpile in the last 18 months, a U.S. research institute said on Tuesday.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Apr 5, 2016
Plumes may point to Pyongyang producing plutonium, says U.S. think tank
Recent satellite images have shown "suspicious" activity at North Korea's main nuclear site at Yongbyon, which could mean reprocessing is underway to produce more plutonium for atomic bombs, a report published by a U.S. research institute said on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 2, 2016
Plutonium from Japan to be disposed of underground in New Mexico
Plutonium from Japan that is headed to the U.S. will be disposed of at a repository in New Mexico after processing at a facility in South Carolina.
JAPAN
Mar 25, 2016
South Carolina governor wants U.S. to divert shipload of arms-grade plutonium from Japan
The demand by Nikki Haley has the potential to embarrass the Obama administration a week before it hosts an important summit on nuclear nonproliferation.
JAPAN
Mar 22, 2016
Ships likely carrying giant plutonium cache leave Ibaraki for U.S.
A ship believed to be carrying plutonium and other nuclear materials left a port in the village of Tokai, Ibaraki Prefecture, on Tuesday in line with a 2014 Japan-U.S. agreement to return the deadly material to the United States.

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A statue of "Dragon Ball" character Goku stands outside the offices of Bandai Namco in Tokyo. The figure is now as recognizable as such characters as Mickey Mouse and Spider-Man.
Akira Toriyama's gift to the world