At the heart of the breakthrough is a process known as in-core thorium-to-uranium conversion that transforms naturally occurring thorium-232 into uranium-233 – a fissile isotope capable of sustaining nuclear chain reactions.
This transformation occurs through a precise sequence of nuclear reactions. The thorium-232 absorbs a neutron to become thorium-233, which decays into protactinium-233 and then further decays into the final product – a powerful nuclear fuel.