Posted on 09/01/2005 7:23:33 PM PDT by FreedomNeocon
Iran claims biotech breakthrough allows it to produce its own yellowcake
Iran has announced a breakthrough in its nuclear program that could end Teheran's dependence on foreign suppliers for nuclear fuel.
The Iranian Atomic Energy Organization said scientists have succeeded in purifying uranium ore found in Iranian mines. The method would substantially decrease costs in the production of concentrated uranium oxide, the first stage of the nuclear fuel cycle.
Since 1999, the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization has been attempting to use biotechnology to purify uranium from mines. Officials said scientists mastered the technique of using microbes to produce yellowcake. Officials said that by introducing bacteria to the uranium ore, a process known as bioleaching, Iran could separate uranium from sulfur. The bacteria produce sulfuric acid that dissolves the ore and facilitates the production of yellowcake.
The announcement comes in the wake of a U.S. intelligence report that assessed that Teheran requires another decade to be able to produce nuclear weapons. The report was said to have expressed doubts whether Teheran could master the nuclear fuel cycle, particularly the mining of uranium ore and its conversion into yellowcake.
The production of yellowcake is seen as one of the most difficult stages in the nuclear fuel cycle. Yellowcake involves the extraction of uranium ore in an expensive process that includes roasting and smelting.
Neither officials nor the Iranian television report disclosed the source of Iran's newly found capability in bioleaching. China and Germany, two suppliers to Iran's nuclear program, have employed bioleaching in mining.
In 2003, Iran announced plans to mine uranium rather than depend on nuclear fuel from foreign suppliers. At the time, Western intelligence sources dismissed the announcement as insignificant, saying Iran did not have the capability to mine uranium for either nuclear reactors or weapons.
Since then, Iran has nearly completed construction of a uranium ore concentrate production plant. Officials said the facility, located near the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, would begin operations by March 2006. A November 2004 report by the International Atomic Energy Agency said the Bandar Abbas Yellowcake Production Plant was located next to the Gehine uranium mine.
"Using biotechnology substantially decreases the cost, increases optimization and prevents environmental contamination," Iranian state television said in a report on Aug. 29.
Officials said the technique has reduced the cost of producing yellowcake by up to 200 times. They said the microbes were used in a demonstration project in uranium mines in central Iran.
"This bacteria is very valuable," an Iranian senior researcher told the state television.
Western experts said bioleaching attains an extraction yield of more than 90 percent and could save 50 percent of the cost associated with traditional ore mining. But experts said the process would be far slower than roasting and smelting.
"The low but variable grade uranium ore found in near-surface deposits will be open-pit mined and processed at the associated mill," the IAEA report said.
After the uranium is mined, it would be processed into uranium ore concentrate, or a fine powder termed yellowcake. At that point, the yellowcake would be packaged in drums and sent to a conversion plant to produce uranium hexafluoride, or UF6, used in gaseous form as feedstock for the enrichment of uranium, a key element in nuclear weapons.
Iran has established a uranium enrichment plant at Natanz, designed to hold up to 50,000 centrifuges. In early August, Teheran also renewed activities at the Uranium Conversion Facility in Isfahan.
On Aug. 29, the Atomic Energy Organization held an exhibition of nuclear technology and its applications in agriculture, industry and medicine. The three-day Teheran exhibition included the participation of nuclear facilities from Arak, Bonab, Isfahan, Karaj, Natanz and Teheran.
"The institutes presented their abilities in nuclear electronics, nano-agriculture, mutation application and biotechnology," the official Iranian news agency, Irna, said.
Oh, PLEASE.
mmmmmmm... yellowcake.
I like it best with chocolate frost!
Yellowcake?
Big Deal!
When they can put Pudding in the Mix let me know!!
EXTREMELY DOUBTFUL. This shabby biotech dog and pony show is designed to deflect attention from the actual efforts to make nuclear bombs
Microbes?
These idiots are just begging for a bomb...
uuhhh please.
Well these "idiots" are gonna be on Europe's doorstep in 5-10 years if something isnt done.
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