Uranium is a very heavy (dense) metal which can be used as an abundant source of concentrated energy.
It occurs in most rocks in concentrations of 2 to 4 parts per million and is as common in the Earth's crust as tin, tungsten
and molybdenum. It occurs in seawater, and could be recovered from the oceans if prices rose significantly. It was discovered
in 1789 by Martin Klaproth, a German chemist, in the mineral called pitchblende. It was named after the planet Uranus, which
had been discovered eight years earlier. Uranium was apparently formed in super novae about 6.6 billion years ago. While it is
not common in the solar system, today its slow radioactive decay provides the main source of heat inside the earth, causing
convection and continental drift. Its melting point is 1132°C. The chemical symbol for uranium is U. On a scale according to
the increasing mass of their nuclei, uranium is the heaviest of all the naturally-occurring elements (Hydrogen is the lightest).
Uranium is 18.7 times as dense as water. Like other elements, uranium occurs in slightly differing forms known as 'isotopes'.
These isotopes ( 16 in the case of uranium ) differ from each other in the number of particles ( neutrons ) in the nucleus.
Natural uranium as found in the Earth's crust is a mixture largely of two isotopes: uranium-238 ( U-238 ), accounting for
99.3% and U-235 about 0.7%. The nucleus of the U-235 atom comprises 92 protons and 143 neutrons (92 + 143 = 235).
When the nucleus of a U-235 atom captures a moving neutron it splits in two ( fissions ) and releases some energy in the
form of heat, also two or three additional neutrons are thrown off. If enough of these expelled neutrons cause the nuclei of
other U-235 atoms to split, releasing further neutrons, a fission Œchain reaction¹ can be achieved. When this happens over
and over again, many millions of times, a very large amount of heat is produced from a relatively small amount of uranium.
Uranium ....... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uranium
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World Uranium Supply and Demand
The only significant commercial use for uranium is as fuel for nuclear power plants for the generation of electricity.
During 2004, 440 nuclear power plants were operating in the world and consumed an estimated 173 million pounds of uranium.
Worldwide production of uranium in 2004 (the most recent year for which statistics are available) was only about 102 million
pounds. In the United States, there are 104 nuclear power plants that produce about 21% of the electricity used. Based on
reports by The Ux Consulting Company ("Ux") and the World Nuclear Association ("WNA"), since the early 1990s, worldwide
uranium production has satisfied only 51% of worldwide demand, and this ratio has also been true in the Western world. Ux
reports that the gap has been filled by secondary supplies, such as inventories held by governments, utilities and others in
the fuel cycle, including the highly enriched uranium (HEU) inventories which are a result of the agreement between the US
and Russia to blend down nuclear warheads. Ux reports that secondary sources combined with uranium production from
existing uranium mines will not be sufficient to meet the world's requirements. New production will be needed. Ux projects
that the industry will need uranium prices to remain at or near current prices to stimulate the capital investment needed to
support such new production. An extremely valuable by-product of Uranium processing is Vanadium, which is used to
strengthen steel and sells for $800 ton.
One of the world’s most concentrated energy sources, a single pound of yellowcake, or U308, is equivalent to 31 barrels of oil
or 10 tons of coal. A typical pellet of uranium weighs 7 grams (0.24 ounces), and can generate as much energy as 3.5 barrels
of oil, 17,000 cubic feet of natural gas or 1,780 pounds of coal. This makes it a clean and efficient source of natural energy.
One of the primary conventional resources of uranium is yellowcake. This is milled uranium oxide, known to chemists as U308.
When uranium ore is sourced from the mine, it contains relatively little of the radioactive element — often no more than ( 1% ).
The yellowcake is put through several milling processes and eventually turned into fuel rods, which are utilized in nuclear power
plants to produce electricity without any greenhouse gases. World demand for uranium will be 185 million pounds in 2013,
estimates the Nuclear Energy Institute in Washington. But supply likely will be significantly lower, at about 130 million pounds.
RadioActivity Video ..........
http://www.reeltime.com/TitleDetails.aspx?mediaID=995
Uranium IH Boards ...........
#board-7239 ......
#board-2530 ......
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Canadian Uranium Producers ...............
PWURF ~
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URCFF ~
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RUSL ~ #Board-6568 CAUIE ~ #Board-8580
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UMNG ~ #Board-5634
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UCCO ~ #Board-7961 URST ~#Board-7900
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URRE ~ #Board-4519 URZ ~#Board-8562
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CLBO ~#Board-4133
LSPN ~ #Board-5911 http://www.crlj.biz
CCJ ~#Board-2690
ABVG ~ #Board-9252 http://www.cameco.com
USEG ~ #board-6030 DNN ~ #board-9118
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ES ~ #board-11247 SRSR ~ #board-8822
http://energysolutions.com http://www.sarissaresources.com
Market Vector ~ Nuclear Energy ~ ( NLR ) ~ #board-10098
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