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Glite Dictionary
🚫 To make undrinkable 🧬 To change structure ☢️ To prevent weapon use
to denature

to denature

1 8.0
Add other material to nuclear fuel so it cannot be used to make a bomb
  • verb
  • /ˌdiːˈneɪtʃər/
  • Specialized
translation icon : desnaturalizar
  • Scientists have developed a method to denature uranium, ensuring it cannot be used in nuclear weapons.

Examples

  • Thus, proliferation via thorium breeding will have to be controlled by an international effort, not by opposing LFTR R&D, or by denaturing the U-233 so that effective breeding becomes impossible.

    Blog text (32)

  • There are disadvantages to denaturing LFTR core salts. It would be harder to breed using a denatured LFTR, and you would be creating a transuranium problem that would be better to avoid if possible.

    Blog text (32)

  • I'd be interested in seeing your proposal for generating sufficient denatured U-233 to supply unreliable nations.

    Blog text (32)

  • But an Lftr using isotopically denatured U233 can be deployed anywhere in the third world.

    Blog text (32)

  • There are disadvantages to denaturing LFTR core salts. It would be harder to breed using a denatured LFTR, and you would be creating a transuranium problem that would be better to avoid if possible.

    Blog text (32)

  • To enhance safety, they decided to denature the material before shipment to prevent misuse.

  • The government plans to denature certain isotopes to control their proliferation among unstable regions.

Surface Forms

denature infinitive
denatured past
denatured past participle
denaturing present participle
denatures third person singular

Morphology

denature = nature (semi-transparent) = de + nature

Morphologically it's de- + nature, but the nuclear engineering sense (altering material to make it unsuitable for weapons) is highly technical and not inferable by average learners.

Etymology

The word denature comes from the parts de- 'remove' and nature 'natural quality', so it means to take away a thing's natural purpose. So to denature nuclear material is to add other material so it no longer has the 'bomb' nature and cannot be used to make a weapon.