Weapons grade uranium is so expensive and energy intensive to make that I can’t imagine they would ever pay for it and the fuel is at end of life so would need refueling soon.
The navy likely puts a safety margin on the fuel so there is probably some life left in the fuel but I would be very surprised if it lasted more than a year or two which is where I am confused on how this would work
Transform2942@lemmy.ml 19 hours ago
Just FYI reactor grade uranium is generally enriched below 5% whereas weapons grade is enriched to ~85%
potatopotato@sh.itjust.works 8 hours ago
Aircraft carriers don’t use reactor grade, they use HEU for more power out of smaller more compact reactors and less frequent refueling. IIRC 93%+ is common.