5. Conclusion

The use of plutonium in the form of MOX fuel in pressurized water reactors is an industrial reality. Thanks to excellent coordination between the various players: manufacturers, research laboratories and power plant operators, this mastery has been achieved in a very short space of time. The enormous amount of work carried out in various fields, such as studies, experiments, process development and adaptations of equipment systems and specifications, has enabled us to minimize the operating constraints on nuclear units, and to keep them running without impairing their performance or safety levels.

The developments currently underway should make it possible to achieve parity between MOX and UO fuels ₂ , and improve cycle cost savings.

As part of the search for downstream cycle solutions, several...