Uranium Fuel Cycle 1 Conventional Mining UndergroundOpen Pit

Uranium Fuel Cycle 1

Conventional Mining: Underground/Open Pit Ranger, Australia, Northern Territories Olympic Dam, South Australia 2

ISR: Drilling – Well Construction 3

ISR: Minimum Disturbance of Environment 4

ISR Plant – Schematic 5

ISR Plant – Beverley, South Australia 6

Ion Exchange Resins 7

Beverley Plant – Impressions IX columns Filtration units Yellowcake Sampling The product

BACKUP 9

Si. C-Si. C Composite Cladding has Potential to Significantly Improve Safety of Light Water Reactors Fukushim a Daiichi Eliminate hydrogen explosions Zr + 2 H 2 O Zr. O 2 + 2 H 2 Si. C + 4 H 2 O Si. O 2 + CO 2 + 4 H 2 For Zircaloy, destruction by steam reaction occurs at lower temp than fuel melt For Si. C/Si. C, structural failure occurs at lower temp than steam reaction At higher temps (~1400 o. C) Zircaloy reaction heat exceeds decay heat General Atomics Proprietary Data 10

Comparison of EM 2 vs Fukushima Plant To Earthquake & Tsunami 9. 0 magnitude earth quake/tsunami: reactor vessels and containments are intact but all electrical power is severed air draft heat exchanger Fukushima EM 2 Grade level Reactor Redundant shutdown cooling Turbinegenerator Leak-tight, below-grade containment • Without power, cooling systems are inoperable • Fuel heats up causing high pressure and hydrogen producing reactions from zircalloy clad • External means of cooling is needed until power to cooling systems is restored • Reactor cooling by natural convection – no power needed • Silicon-carbide clad does not react with helium coolant at high temperature • Walk-away safe – no external intervention needed General Atomics Proprietary Data

Fuel Resources for Electric Power Generation in the U. S. A. U. S. Energy Reserves (Trillion Bbls Oil Energy Equivalent) Depleted uranium (DU)/ Used nuclear fuel (UNF) inventories 8 TBbl Depleted Uranium 1 TBbl Used Nuclear Fuel 12 Energy supply for > 300 years electric power generation

“Convert & Burn” reactor achieves a 30 -year fuel life by converting 238 U to 239 Pu and burning in situ Be. O reflector Graphite reflector Starter Control drum location n versio r Starte B 4 C neutron Shield LEU: ~ 12% Lowenriched uranium DU: Depleted uranium TRU: Transuranics UNF: Used nuclear fuel MOX: Mixed U/Pu oxides NU: Natural uranium Recycled EM 2 discharge 30% 232 Th 70% 238 U Core support floor 316 L General Atomics Proprietary Data 13 Fertile

EM 2 Changes the Game Relative to Nuclear Waste LWR Waste Disposal EM 2 Waste Disposal • Deep geologic repository • Above ground storage • Million year life • 400 year life • Large storage capacity • Small storage capacity • Long term heat • Short term heat • Long term radioactivity • Short term radioactivity General Atomics Proprietary Data

BACKUP 2 General Atomics Proprietary Data 15

ISR Mining Process • • Groundwater pumped to surface (at start-up) Small amount of acid and oxidant added Water pumped back into aquifer Uranium leached Water pumped to surface Uranium recovered by ion exchange (IX) Water recycled [up to 100 recycles (pore volume exchanges)] 16

Leaching Chemistry • Uranium ore – Uranium as U(IV) fixed in minerals, e. g. pitchblende UO 2, coffinite USi. O 4 • Mobilization of uranium by oxidation and complexation – Uranium needs to be oxidized to U(VI) to form soluble uranyl ions UO 22 - • Leaching methods – Alkaline (carbonate) leaching: UO 2(CO 3)22 - and higher-order complexes – Acidic (sulfuric acid) leaching: UO 2(SO 4)22 - and higher-order complexes – Application of oxidants: O 2, H 2 O 2 17

Uranium Recovery • Mining solution contains anionic uranyl complexes like UO 2(CO 3)22 - or UO 2(SO 4)22 • Recovery from mining solution by ion-exchange (IX) – Resin (in form of beads at 0. 5 -1 mm diameter) – Resin beds in big columns (about 2 -4 m diameter, 3 -10 m height) – Mining fluid passes IX columns and recycles to wellfields – Uranium is adsorbed on the resin • Strip of uranium from IX resin by highly-ionic solution, e. g. salt solutions (Na. Cl) • Further processing includes precipitation of uranium as uranium oxide, thickening, de-watering, drying, packaging 18

ISR – Hydrogeology For ISR mining, ore body must have following properties: – Ore body must be in an aquifer (sedimentary formation) – Aquifer sediments must be permeable – Aquifer should be vertically confined (above and below) by impermeable layers 19

Beverley ISR Mine – Processing Plant 20