Vocabulary Builder — Essay & Answer Writing
Fissile
Capable of undergoing nuclear fission when struck by slow (thermal) neutrons; referring to isotopes that can sustain a nuclear chain reaction and are therefore usable in nuclear reactors or weapons
Latin fissilis (that can be split) — from findere (to split, cleave)
"The Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) at Kalpakkam is designed to produce more fissile plutonium-239 than it consumes, using uranium-238 (a fertile, non-fissile material) as its blanket — a process that forms the core logic of India's three-stage nuclear programme."
Critical for GS3 (Science & Tech — nuclear energy, India's three-stage programme). Key fissile materials: Uranium-235 (natural, 0.7% abundance), Plutonium-239 (produced in reactors from U-238), Uranium-233 (produced from Thorium-232). India's three-stage programme: Stage 1 — U-235 in PHWRs; Stage 2 — Pu-239 in FBRs (breeder); Stage 3 — U-233 from Th-232 in advanced reactors. PFBR uses mixed oxide (MOX) fuel — U-238 + Pu-239. Fissile material cut-off treaty (FMCT) negotiations in Conference on Disarmament (Geneva). India's minimum credible deterrence requires fissile material stockpile.
