Coated Particle Fuel: The Gobstoppers of the Nuclear World

摘要

The well-known and much-loved gobstopper sweets may seem like a world apart from the nuclear industry and may feel rather out of place in a journal dedicated to the field. Yet, these colourful, unique pieces of confectionary have a remarkable amount in common with coated particle fuel (CPF), a promising advanced nuclear fuel candidate I am researching, with a range of safety and economic benefits. To understand this, let's first consider the fundamentals of a gobstopper. They typically consist of a core of bubble-gum surrounded by many layers - such as a variety of coloured sugars, flavourings and glazes - to make them look and taste appealing (Figure 1). These layers result in them being particularly durable, with many a child trying, and failing, to bite through them in one go (there's a reason they are alternatively called jawbreakers after all), and the idea that they could even be everlasting in Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.