AEC News

Large quantities of the highly radioactive mixture of elements resulting from uranium fission are now stored in underground tanks at the Hanford plutonium production works in the Pacific Northwest, according to the Atomic Energy Commission, and in an effort to develop ways of estimating the potential uses to which such fission products might ultimately be put, the AEC has asked the Stanford Research Institute to make a thorough study of the problem. The immediate objectives of the study are to acquaint industrial concerns with the characteristics of fission products and to obtain the cooperation of industry in developing estimates of their possible utilization. While it is not expected that large, readily available markets for fission products will be found, it is nevertheless the aim of the Institute’s study to uncover potential large‐scale uses that may be developed with minimum cost and difficulty.

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