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Comments on some of the odd stuff which comes into my life. I honestly don't see why people find this interesting, but clearly they do.

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Decay rates of nuclear isotopes vs. temperature (05:40)

I found this blog entry regarding decay rates of radioactive materials as a function of temperature and container type. The blog speculates on using some techniques to improve handling of nuclear waste.

While I find get rid of it sooner a desirable end, if the decay rate could be increased to the point where useful thermal energy was generated, it would open a path to getting more energy out as well.

Today's thought: if I were handling nuclear waste, I would investigate something like zone melting to see if it could be used to separate isotopes for differential treatment. I know about centrifuges, but I can't find evidence of zone melting being tried. If you didn't follow the link it's used to purify semiconductors and produce a large single crystal.