Thorium

(Updated 11 November 2011) 

• Thorium is more abundant in nature than uranium. 
• It is fertile rather than fissile, and can be used in conjunction with fissile material as nuclear fuel. 
• Thorium fuels can breed fissile uranium-233. 

The use of thorium as a new primary energy source has been a tantalizing prospect for many years. Extracting its latent energy value in a cost-effective manner remains a challenge, and will require considerable R&D investment.

Nature and sources of thorium