Ultra-thin 242mAm fuel elements in nuclear reactors. II

There is growing interest in using 242mAm as a nuclear fuel for space reactors and nuclear batteries. In this paper, we discuss different 242mAm enrichments, as well as fuel weight requirements, to produce a critical reactor. It was found that relatively low enrichments of 242mAm, about 10 w/o, are enough to guarantee criticality. Such low enrichments might eliminate the need for a 242mAm enrichment process. It was also found that the best results for low 242mAm requirements are obtained with a moderator to fuel volume ratio of 10,000.