During the early days of atomic weapons development, both the United States and the Soviet Union faced the immense scientific and logistical challenge of separating and converting plutonium on an industrial scale. Though Soviet espionage allowed for replication of U.S. reactor and weapon designs, each nation took distinctly different paths when it came to chemical processing.

The B Reactor Museum Association invites the public to a compelling presentation that delves into these contrasting approaches. Based on decades of international collaboration, this talk highlights the scientific innovations, historical contexts, and geopolitical forces that shaped how each superpower tackled the complex, costly, and waste-heavy process of plutonium conversion.