Editing Nuclear reprocessing (section)

====PUREX====
{{Main|PUREX}}

'''PUREX''', the current standard method, is an acronym standing for '''''P'''lutonium and '''U'''ranium '''R'''ecovery by '''EX'''traction''. The PUREX process is a [[liquid-liquid extraction]] method used to reprocess spent [[nuclear fuel]], to extract [[uranium]] and [[plutonium]], independent of each other, from the [[Nuclear fission|fission]] products. This is the most developed and widely used process in the industry at present.

When used on fuel from commercial power reactors the plutonium extracted typically contains too much Pu-240 to be considered "weapons-grade" plutonium, ideal for use in a nuclear weapon. Nevertheless, highly reliable nuclear weapons can be built at all levels of technical sophistication using reactor-grade plutonium.<ref>[http://belfercenter.hks.harvard.edu/publication/2376/us_program_for_disposition_of_excess_weapons_plutonium.html?breadcrumb=%2Fpublication%2F2014%2Fenabling_a_significant_future_for_nuclear_power U.S. Program for Disposition of Excess Weapons Plutonium] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160408045640/http://belfercenter.hks.harvard.edu/publication/2376/us_program_for_disposition_of_excess_weapons_plutonium.html?breadcrumb=%2Fpublication%2F2014%2Fenabling_a_significant_future_for_nuclear_power |date=8 April 2016 }}, IAEA-SM-346/102, Matthew Bunn, 2002.</ref> Moreover, reactors that are capable of refueling frequently can be used to produce [[nuclear weapon|weapon-grade]] plutonium, which can later be recovered using PUREX. Because of this, PUREX chemicals are monitored.<ref>{{cite book|last=Irvine|first=Maxwell|title=Nuclear power : a very short introduction|year=2011|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Oxford|isbn=9780199584970|page=55|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UfSr1oI4lCMC&pg=PA55|access-date=22 February 2016|archive-date=28 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200328003740/https://books.google.com/books?id=UfSr1oI4lCMC&pg=PA55|url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:Uranium Reprocessing.jpg|thumb|Plutonium Processing]]