B Plant

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200 East has two processing plants, B Plant (1943) and the Plutonium Uranium Extraction Plant (PUREX) (1953).

The 200 Area is where fuel irradiated in the old production reactors was chemically processed to separate and recover plutonium for use in nuclear weapons. Several other valuable isotopes were also recovered. During World War II, the two 200 Areas were constructed about 5 miles apart and in such a manner that it would be difficult for an enemy aerial attack to destroy all of the chemical separations buildings. Originally four separation plants were to be built, two in each area. Three plants were built, but the process worked so well that only two plants were needed.
Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_reprocessing
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Coordinates:   46°33'26"N   119°32'29"W
This article was last modified 14 years ago