1. Mining of the uranium ore.
2. Milling and refining of the ore to produce uranium concentrates, U3O8.
3. Processing to produce of uranium hexafluoride, UF6, from the uranium concen-trates. This
provides feed for isotopic (U235) enrichment.
4. Isotopic enrichment of uranium hexafluoride to reach reactor enrichment require-ments. This
is done invariably now by the gaseous diffusion process.
5. Fabrication of the reactor fuel elements. This includes conversion of uranium hexafluoride to
uranium dioxide UO2, pelletizing, encapsulating in rods, and assembling the fuel rods into
subassemblies.