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> Yes, the process involves production of Pu-239, which is weapon-grade and may raise proliferation concerns.

Not if you use Thorium breeder reactors.

If you didn't include 238U in your thorium breeder, the 233U that comes out will be usable in weapons (at least until enough of the 232U decays to present a gamma hazard.) And if you DO include 238U, you get plutonium.

I'm interested in nuclear energy but it appears that I don't know enough. Thorium breeder, processes generating pu-239... Is there a relatively accessible book I can read to understand all of this better?

The LFTR presentations (lots of youtubes) showed how their isotope chains were proliferation resistant.

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