INFOGRAPHIC: 9 Fascinating Facts About Uranium

Uranium (U), atomic number 92 on the Periodic Table, is a very heavy metal.  Uraninite and pitchblende (black color) and uranophane (yellow weathering product of uraninite) are common Uranium minerals. In nature, uranium is found as uranium-238 (99.2739 –99.2752%), uranium-235 (0.7198 – 0.7202%), and a very small amount of uranium-234 (0.0050 – 0.0059%). Uranium can be used as an abundant source of concentrated energy. Since it is naturally radioactive, uranium, is most commonly used in the nuclear power industry to generate electricity. Uranium-235 has the distinction of being the only naturally occurring fissile isotope (capable of sustaining a chain reaction of nuclear fission). Uranium-238 is fissionable by fast neutrons. Uranium ore is mined in several ways: by open pit, underground, in-situ leaching, and borehole mining (by high pressure water jets). Low-grade uranium ore typically contains 0.01 to 0.25% uranium oxides (commonly reported as U3O8). In nature, uranium occurs in a few deposit types including unconformity-related deposits, Olympic Dam type deposits, sandstone deposits, quartz-pebble conglomerate deposits, surficial deposits (calcrete deposits), vein deposits, volcanic and caldera-related deposits, intrusive deposits, and metasomatite deposits. Thorium is a naturally occurring radioactive element which undergoes alpha decay. Thorium is estimated to be about three to four times more abundant than uranium in the Earth’s crust (9.6 ppm Th, 2.7 ppm U), and is chiefly refined from monazite sands as a by-product of extracting rare earth metals. Because of its radioactivity, uranium is now mostly used for military and energy purposes.  However, uranium compounds were used for centuries to color glass. Uranium trioxide (UO3) is an orange powder and has been used in the manufacture of commonly used dishware; but these plates have been long discontinued. Other uranium compounds have also been used to make vaseline glass and glazes. If you come across some of these items at a swap meet or antique store, remember that the uranium within these items is radioactive and should be treated with care. Next posting, I’ll write about an investigation of XRF analysis success in U exploration at a Northeast Mexico site.  In the meantime, take a look at this infographic that lists 9 Fast Facts about Uranium.