{"id":16583,"date":"2026-04-24T08:52:03","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T13:52:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ericsiegmund.com\/fireant\/?p=16583"},"modified":"2026-04-24T08:52:06","modified_gmt":"2026-04-24T13:52:06","slug":"from-dirt-to-detonation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ericsiegmund.com\/fireant\/2026\/04\/24\/from-dirt-to-detonation\/","title":{"rendered":"From Dirt to Detonation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Note: I’m still on a blogging sabbatical until June 1st (it <\/em>might end sooner…) but in light of current events and the presence of some potential misunderstandings, I decided to take a dive into a topic of primary importance in those events. I covet your indulgence.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I’m writing this in the middle of the US\/Israel war against Iran. I have no interest in discussing my views on that conflict, but one aspect of it has sent me down a rather esoteric rabbit hole, and I’d like to drag you along with me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For as long as I can remember (OK…no tacky comments, please<\/em>), the discussions around Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons has always included references to the centrifuges that seem to be an integral part of the process by which uranium becomes fissionable, i.e. the part of a bomb that goes boom. But I’ve never understood how a centrifuge is used to create that material. The pursuit of that understanding is the impetus behind the story: the life cycle of Uranium-235, aka 235<\/sup>U, aka U-235.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite the possible over-dramatization of the post title, my goal is not to be prophetic or apocalyptic, but perhaps more professorial without being pedantic. The steps that begin with a mine of some sort and end with something called “highly enriched uranium” (HEU) \u2014 of which there is only an estimated 3 million pounds in the world \u2014 is at times mind-numbingly complex, but there’s something of a 50,000-feet view that makes it understandable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, if you’ll permit me, I’ll be your Mr. Peabody<\/a> if you’ll be my Sherman<\/a> and together we’ll try to remove the mystery from the process of creating a somewhat scary material. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A dog and his boy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

By the way, this is actually a pared-down version of my original post. I was going to describe the full “life cycle,” beginning with mining and ending with enriched uranium, but two steps into the process, the post was more than 700 words, and \u2014 to borrow the wisdom of “Sweet Brown” Wilkins \u2014ain’t nobody got time for that<\/a>. But, if you really want to go through that whole life cycle, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) website<\/a> does a great job of summarizing the steps. Note, however, that its flowchart is designed to explain how fuel for nuclear reactors is produced; we’re focusing on the production of weapons-grade material.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Table of Contents (for the impatient reader)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n