Conversion of spent nuclear fuel to fluoride salt fuel for molten salt reactors

A method for converting nuclear waste to a usable fuel for a molten salt reactor system comprising:

• providing the nuclear waste comprising uranium oxides, plutonium oxides, and a plurality of actinide oxides;
• exposing the nuclear waste to a mixture of nitrogen trifluoride and argon gas;
• heating the nuclear waste and the mixture to a first temperature sufficient to fluorinate at least one of the plurality of actinide oxides to at least one fluorinated actinide;
• heating the nuclear waste and the mixture to a second temperature sufficient to fluorinate the uranium oxides to a uranium tetrafluoride;
• heating the nuclear waste and the mixture to a third temperature sufficient to fluorinate the plutonium oxides to a plutonium tetrafluoride;
• wherein the second temperature and third temperature are below a volatilization temperature of uranium tetrafluoride and plutonium tetrafluoride;
• and
• generating, by the heating steps, a molten fuel salt.

A system for converting a spent nuclear fuel to a molten fuel salt comprising:

• a fuel conversion setup comprising an actinide glovebox configured to receive the spent nuclear fuel;
• wherein the actinide glovebox is configured to shield an exterior environment from radiation emitted a from constituents of the spent nuclear fuel;
• wherein the spent nuclear fuel comprises fissile material and a plurality of actinides;
• wherein the fuel conversion setup is operable to introduce a mixture of nitrogen trifluoride gas and argon gas to the actinide glovebox thereby exposing the nitrogen trifluoride to the spent nuclear fuel;
• and
• a heating element operable to heat the actinide glovebox to a plurality of temperatures corresponding to a fluorination temperature of the fissile material and a fluorination temperature of at least one actinide of the plurality of actinides.