Fuel is not a major cost right now, but it inevitably will be at some point. Current estimates are that we have 80-250 years of uranium left [0], so we could use a different energy source for the long run.
The difference in radioactive danger, is because not all nuclear reactions are treated equally. Tritium decays once, emitting a 0.019MeV beta particle [1]. Uranium creates an avalanche of particles [2] for a total of 51.7 MeV. So it has the leeway to be both more radioactive and to be it for longer. But both the type and energy of the radiation have intricate effects on how they interact with biology and so how dangerous they really are.
That said, exactly how radioactive fusion waste will be is a bit a philosophical problem, as nobody knows what the minimal requirements are for a functional plant.
> As of 2017, identified uranium reserves recoverable at US$130/kg were 6.14 million tons (compared to 5.72 million tons in 2015). At the rate of consumption in 2017, these reserves are sufficient for slightly over 130 years of supply. The identified reserves as of 2017 recoverable at US$260/kg are 7.99 million tons (compared to 7.64 million tons in 2015).
I wouldn't be too worried right now though, because Table 1.1 in uranium-2018 shows that the known recoverable uranium sources @ $40/kgU grew 50% between 2015 and 2017, and known recoverable uranium sources @ $80/kgU grew 4.6% over the same time period.
No one's going to go around prospecting unless they think they can make a profit doing it.
Finally some numbers! Thank you. So again, this sounds like more evidence against an economic advantage of fusion over fission, is that correct in your opinion?
The difference in radioactive danger, is because not all nuclear reactions are treated equally. Tritium decays once, emitting a 0.019MeV beta particle [1]. Uranium creates an avalanche of particles [2] for a total of 51.7 MeV. So it has the leeway to be both more radioactive and to be it for longer. But both the type and energy of the radiation have intricate effects on how they interact with biology and so how dangerous they really are.
That said, exactly how radioactive fusion waste will be is a bit a philosophical problem, as nobody knows what the minimal requirements are for a functional plant.
[0] https://bettermeetsreality.com/how-much-uranium-is-left-in-t... [1] en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tritium [2] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decay_chain