Takao Koichiro
Laboratory for Zero-carbon Energy, Institute of Innovative Research, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1 N1-32, O-okayama, Meguro-ku, 152-8550 Tokyo, Japan.
Dalton Trans. 2023 Jul 25;52(29):9866-9881. doi: 10.1039/d3dt01019h.
While one should be aware that its zero CO emission is actually achievable only when electric power is generated, nuclear power is one of the most viable and proven "carbon-free" energy sources to provide baseload electricity to the current energy-demanding society. Even after the power generation, the major part of spent nuclear fuels still consists of recyclable nuclear fuel materials such as U and Pu, promising circular economy of nuclear energy systems in principle. However, actual situations are not very simple due to the following issues: (1) resource security of nuclear fuel materials, (2) issues of depleted uranium, and (3) treatment and disposal of high-level radioactive wastes. In this Perspective, I discussed how chemistry can contribute to resolving these problems and what task academic research in fundamental chemistry should take on there.