Uranium Conversion
Following the milling of Uranium ore, the Uranium must be converted to a form suitable for an enrichment process. For gaseous enrichment processes, this means converting yellowcake to Uranium Hexafluoride gas (UF6): a monoisotopic gas that is the only uranium compound that exists at regular temperatures and pressures. The conversion process consists of removing impurities, combining the purified Uranium with anhydrous Hydrogen Fluoride and fluorine gas in a series of chemical reactions, cooling the UF6 to liquid form, further cooling it to solid form, and shipping it to an enrichment plant.
FAS Resources on Uranium Conversion:
Overview of Uranium Production
Additional Resources:
