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Depleted uranium (DU), also referred to in the past as Q-metal, depletalloy, or D-38, is uranium with a lower content of the fissile isotope 235 U than natural uranium. [2] The less radioactive and non-fissile 238 U is the main component of depleted uranium.
The use of depleted uranium (DU) in munitions is controversial because of questions about potential long-term health effects. [ 4 ] [ 5 ] [ 31 ] Normal functioning of the kidney , brain , liver , heart , and numerous other systems can be affected by uranium exposure, because uranium is a toxic metal . [ 2 ]
Depleted uranium is preferred over similarly dense metals due to its ability to be easily machined and cast as well as its relatively low cost. [22] The main risk of exposure to depleted uranium is chemical poisoning by uranium oxide rather than radioactivity (uranium being only a weak alpha emitter).
When fired, depleted uranium becomes ‘essentially an exotic metal dart fired at extraordinarily high speed’ ...
Ingesting or inhaling quantities of uranium - even depleted uranium - is dangerous: it depresses renal function and raises the risk of developing a range of cancers. ... Depleted uranium is a ...
As a part of a $1 billion aid package, the United States announced this week that it is sending depleted anti-tank munitions to Ukraine to help Zelensky’s troops fend off Russian tanks. The ...
Depleted uranium has an even higher concentration of 238 U, and even low-enriched uranium (LEU) is still mostly 238 U. Reprocessed uranium is also mainly 238 U, with about as much uranium-235 as natural uranium, a comparable proportion of uranium-236, and much smaller amounts of other isotopes of uranium such as uranium-234, uranium-233, and ...
For natural uranium fuel, fissile component starts at 0.7% 235 U concentration in natural uranium. At discharge, total fissile component is still 0.5% (0.2% 235 U, 0.3% fissile 239 Pu, 241 Pu ). Fuel is discharged not because fissile material is fully used-up, but because the neutron-absorbing fission products have built up and the fuel becomes ...