Clean energy has become a critical goal for the future, and U.S. organizations strive to meet it by fueling advanced reactors. LIS Technologies is aiding the national effort with its laser isotope separation process known as CRISLA.
The process of enriching uranium using lasers has been a worldwide focus since the 1970s when it was first attempted in the Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Until now, the U.S. has invested in two main processes: atomic vapor laser isotope separation (AVLIS) and molecular laser isotope separation (MLIS). However, there are scaling issues with both of these options that make relying on them for clean energy generation untenable in many cases.
When employing AVLIS, the process of separating the U- metal alloy results in vapor pressure that’s too low to make it economically feasible. With the traditional MLIS process, the overall laser system is extremely complex, which can lead to scaling challenges when attempting to implement it at a commercial level where the full duty cycle is required.
LIS Technologies, a US-based proprietary developer of a patented laser enrichment technology that relies on infrared lasers to selectively separate isotopes from each other, has taken another approach with a process known as condensation repression isotope selective laser activation (CRISLA).
CRISLA uses laser systems at a different wavelength, which solves some of the complexity and reliability challenges of prior art technologies. CRISLA is more efficient than any previous attempts at laser uranium enrichment. Those factors, combined with lower energy consumption, more manageable facility requirements, and an overall more environmentally friendly process, make CRISLA the potential technology of the future for nuclear fuel production.
By perfecting the enriched uranium process, LIS Technologies is making all of the benefits of laser enrichment more apparent. “Lasers are more selective, more elegant,” says Christo Liebenberg, the company’s co-founder and CEO. “It’s more precise, it’s much cheaper, and it has a much smaller footprint. There are so many benefits to lasers when it comes to isotope separation.”
The watchwords in the hunt for reliable energy are “efficiency” and “safety,” always with the understanding that sacrificing the environment isn’t an option. Nuclear energy has a leg up in this regard because it’s already a low-carbon energy source that doesn’t have the same environmental impact that fossil fuels do. It’s also a more reliable source, capable of consistently producing vast quantities of energy at a large-scale.
To accommodate the continually expanding need for clean energy, one of the most promising options is the use of small modular reactors (SMRs).
SMRs are relatively compact reactors that can be built more rapidly and affordably than traditional reactors while also being safer due to their passive cooling systems. The catch is that all SMRs require high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU).
“The U.S. is looking to build up a domestic fuel manufacturing supply chain, so right now, none of these SMR companies or microreactors know where they’re going to get their future fuel from,” says Jay Yu, Chairman and President of LIS Technologies.
Going with the traditional centrifuge approach of enriching uranium is still an option, but it requires thousands of centrifuges that come with a hefty price tag. This is where CRISLA’s laser isotope separation process can help. The efficient laser system reduces the carbon footprint of these reactors while reducing the frequency of fuel replacement.
Even better, the laser excitation process is highly selective, making it possible to strip uranium-235 from the feed material more efficiently than centrifugation methods. This results in less potentially harmful waste products.
Perhaps the most substantial challenge LIS Technologies and its previously demonstrated CRISLA process face is concerns about export control and proliferation. Making the uranium enrichment process more affordable and efficient could open the door to less peaceful uses of laser isotope separation technology should it fall into the wrong hands.
“We have no intent to use our technology for anything other than peaceful applications, such as producing nuclear fuel for electricity generation”, says Christo Liebenberg.
To address the problem of the wrong people potentially gaining access to enriched uranium, LIS Technologies’ CRISLA process will have to be protected and classified, because it falls in the category of “sensitive nuclear technology”.
Despite the lower impact CRISLA has on the planet, environmental protection groups are still expressing various worries. Laser enrichment methods are already in Greenpeace’s crosshairs, and that’s not likely to change anytime soon.
Regardless, the company’s goal is clear. “We want to produce nuclear fuel that is used in nuclear reactors that will generate new energy that’s clean,” says Liebenberg. “Virtually carbon free energy and to get that online so we can do our modest part to help combat global warming and prevent further temperature increase of our only planet.”
LIS Technologies is paving the way toward more reliable, efficient, and affordable energy. It stands poised as one of the companies that will help the United States reach its nuclear power goals in time to avoid the ever-worsening effects of global climate change.
