BAKU, Azerbaijan, January 20. The United States intends to dispose of its 34 tons of surplus weapons-grade plutonium in a manner that potentially preserves its military use, TurkicWorld reports.

Initially, this amount was intended to be converted into nuclear power plant fuel (called MOX fuel) to produce electricity. After being used in a reactor, plutonium almost completely loses its properties. However, the US Department of Energy, which includes NNSA, abandoned this method in 2018.

According to NNSA, the United States currently plans to dispose of excess weapons-grade plutonium by dilution, mixing it with various other substances, and subsequent disposal. However, this method theoretically leaves the possibility of separating the plutonium and converting it back into nuclear material.

In order to dispose of excess weapons-grade plutonium, the United States plans to build new or modify existing production facilities at NNSA facilities in Savannah River in South Carolina, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) in New Mexico, the Pantex plant in Texas, and also prepare deep Geological storage facility for radioactive waste (Waste Isolation Pilot Plant - WIPP) in New Mexico.