Nuclear Energy (Source of Electricity)

8/13/2019 Nuclear Energy (Source of Electricity)

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WHAT IS NUCLEAR POWER?

Nuclear power is an alternative power source that uses the nuclear fission ofuranium to create heat and, thereby, through a heat transfer mechanism andturbines, create electricity.

Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat andelectricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 131% of the world's electricity, with the !."., #rance, and $apan together accountingfor about &% of nuclear generated electricity. n (&&), the *+* reported therewere 3 nuclear power reactors in operation in the world, operating in31 countries. *lso, more than 1& naval vessels using nuclear propulsion havebeen built.

-http//www.eia.doe.gov/0ids

HOW DOES IT WORK?

#or a nuclear reactor to create energy it is necessary for nuclear fission to ta0eplace. his occurs when an atom is split into smaller particles and an enormousamount of energy is released in the process. !ranium is used as the fuel for thereaction as it is radioactive, and is therefore unstable enough to be bro0en downinto smaller parts. he uranium atom absorbs a neutron and splits into two e2ualparts and energy is created. his 0inetic energy becomes heat energy as theparticles slow down, and it is this heat energy, which is used to produce electricity.he heat is moved through a transfer medium, such as water, and is used to turnwater into steam. his steam turns a turbine, which is connected to a generator. *sthe turbine turns the generator it creates electricity, which is then transferred tothe consumers.


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ther "ource 4below5 http//www.darvill.clara.net/altenerg/nuclear.htmhow

Nuclear power stations wor0 in pretty much the same way as fossil fuel7burningstations, e8cept that a 9chain reaction9 inside a nuclear reactor ma0es the heatinstead.

he reactor uses !ranium rods as fuel, and the heat is generated by nuclearfission: neutrons smash into the nucleus of the uranium atoms, which splitroughly in half and release energy in the form of heat.

:arbon dio8ide gas or water is pumped through the reactor to ta0e the heat away,this then heats water to ma0e steam.

he steam drives turbines which drive generators.

;odern nuclear power stations use the same type of turbines and generators asconventional power stations.

n however it isn't as renewable as some of thealternatives, such as wind or solar power, which rely solely on natural phenomenato create their power. n the short term it is unli0ely that uranium will run out, buteventually it will. herefore we can say that nuclear power is only renewable in theshort term.

APPLICATIONS O NUCLEAR POWER

*bout & nuclear reactors are used around the world to produce about 1)% of theworld's electricity but in theory nuclear fission can be used for much more. *t the


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end of the "econd =orld =ar the *llies secured victory by dropping the atomicbomb on $apan. he bomb uses the same principles of splitting the atom as thenuclear reactors do in creating electricity. n a smaller, less destructive scale, thetheories of nuclear fission are used daily in medicine. "canning devices and thetreatment of cancer both use the radiation from splitting an atom.

AD!ANTA"ES

*s an alternative to normal coal7based electricity production nuclear power isfavourable as it is much more efficient than coal 4(&g of uranium produces(&&&& times more electricity than (&g of coal5 and is far less polluting,especially to our atmosphere, as no harmful greenhouse gases are emitted.4ie. carbon mono8ide, sulphur dio8ide, nitrogen o8ide etc.5.

t is generally a reliable process that can be counted on to produce electricityfor many years 4average availability over three years is about ?&%5.

he amount of waste produced each year would cover only your dining roomtable@

he waste is stored in fire7, water7, and earth2ua0e7proof capsules to ensuresafety.

ther "ource http//wantto0nowit.com/advantages7of7nuclear7power/

Nuclear power plants are more efficient than ever before. New technologyhas made them more reliable 4they brea0 down less often5 and safer. Aeoplefor nuclear power argue that this is evidenced by more and more nations4such as :hina5 building nuclear power plants.

Beduce greenhouse gasemissions. his is a contentious issue. Aroponents of

nuclear power argue that, as no coal or fossil fuels are burnt, no carbondio8ide is released into the air. Cowever, uranium has to be mined andtransported to the nuclear plant.


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that *mericans will not be susceptible to price rises in oil and gas. Aresident


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Terroris$ Tar'e$sFue to the wide spread damage a reactor breach could cause, nuclear powerplants could become favoured terrorist targets. "ome nuclear reactions alsoproduce plutonium in large 2uantities which could be used in nuclear weaponry.

No$ rene(a*leNuclear power is not a renewable source of energy. !ranium is a metal that ismined from the ground in much the same way as coal is mined. t is a scarcemetal and the supply of uranium will one day run out ma0ing all the nuclearpower plants obsolete. Nuclear power is not a long term solution to finding arenewable, environmentally friendly energy source.

Ti+e an% ,one-t ta0es a long time to plan and build a nuclear power plant that is safe andeffective. Nuclear power is therefore to a 2uic0 solution to the worldEs energyissues. n addition to the time it ta0e to effectively plan and build a nuclearpower plant, a lot of money has to be spent to ma0e sure that the plant is safe.

!nsafe plants mean that there are more li0ely to be accidents.

NUCLEAR POWER IN SOUTH ARICA

he only nuclear power plant in "outh *frica, and on the whole continent, issituated Hust outside :ape own. Ioeberg Aower "tation is instrumental inproviding electricity to :ape own and to the whole of the =estern :ape. he"tation employs about 1(&& people and was brought online on the th *pril 1?.t is able to produce 1?&&;= 4megawatts5 of electricity by means of its two&&;= units. Badioactive waste is either transferred to a remote site in theIalahari Fesert 46&&0m away5 or if the waste is highly reactive it is stored onsite in

special containment facilities.

-http//www.es0om.co.Ga/live/content.php

INTERESTIN" INOR,ATION

ne of the common worries of nuclear power is the danger of radiation lea0s,espacially after the horrors of :hernobyl. n :ape own we are fortunate that


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Ioeberg is located on a geologically sound platform, far beyond the internationallyprescribed 1&0m distance from city limits. he walls of reactors are also thic0enough to withstand an earth2ua0e or even a plane crash.

*s the :ity of :ape own has seenthe plants aren't completely reliable. n (&&6there were many blac0outs in the :ape own metropole, caused by faults andbrea0downs in the Ioeberg plant. ;aintenance was being carried out on the onegenerator when the other generator failed and shut down 7 causing blac0outs formonths during winter.

Ioeberg is situated the furthest "outh of any nuclear reactors in the =orld.

-http//www.es0om.co.Ga/live/content.php

"ource 4


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Jermany which gets around (&%.Note even for !"* which has the largest installedbase of nuclear reactors shutting down almost 1&& J= of Nuclear :apacity is 2uiteunthin0able.


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(. Lo( uel Cos$ 7 Oarge amounts of Nuclear +nergy can be produced fromthe fission on radioactive elements li0e uranium.he costs of nuclear fuel isrelatively very low compared to other energy sources li0e coal and gas.*lsouranium prices currently are 2uite low ma0ing the nuclear electricity priceeven lower

3. Lo( Elec$rici$- Cos$ he +lectricity produced from Nuclear Aower is 2uite

low at around 37c/Iwh ma0ing it very attractive to construct hydroplants.Nuclear Alants also have long lives of between &76& years whichmeans that they are e8tremely profitable once constructed within reasonablecosts

. No "reen#ouse "as E+issions8Air Pollu$ion Nuclear electricity doesnot produce any JCJ emissions or cause air pollution from the combustionof fossil fuels unli0e coal,oil or gas.his ma0es them very attractive as asource of cheap,non carbon dio8ide producing electricity.

. Hi'# Loa% ac$or 7 Nuclear Aower Alants have very high load factors in

e8cess of ?&%.hey can generate power almost (/) and only re2uireshutdown for periodic maintanance

6. Hu'e Po$en$ialNuclear +nergy Aotential is almost infinite compared tothe limited and pea0 features of other forms of energy li0e=ind,Jeothermal,il,Jas and others.nly "olar +nergy can be said to havemore potential.Note new technologies and fuels li0e fast breeder andthorium are still in the wor0s which can increase the potential of NuclearAower more

:opyright http//www.freeinfosociety.com/images/science/nuclearenergy1.Hpg


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Bi*lio'ra/#-:

http//library.thin02uest.org/&6aug/&133/nuclear.htm

http//wantto0nowit.com/disadvantages7of7nuclear7power/

http//wantto0nowit.com/advantages7of7nuclear7power/

http//www.darvill.clara.net/altenerg/nuclear.htmhow

http//www.greenworldinvestor.com/(&11/&/&/uses7of7nuclear7power7nuclear7transport7shipssubmarinesagriculturehuman7healthelectricityfuturistic7

applications/

http//www.freeinfosociety.com/images/science/nuclearenergy1.Hpg
http://library.thinkquest.org/06aug/01335/nuclear.htmhttp://wanttoknowit.com/disadvantages-of-nuclear-power/http://wanttoknowit.com/advantages-of-nuclear-power/http://www.darvill.clara.net/altenerg/nuclear.htm#howhttp://www.greenworldinvestor.com/2011/04/05/uses-of-nuclear-power-nuclear-transport-shipssubmarinesagriculturehuman-healthelectricityfuturistic-applications/http://www.greenworldinvestor.com/2011/04/05/uses-of-nuclear-power-nuclear-transport-shipssubmarinesagriculturehuman-healthelectricityfuturistic-applications/http://www.greenworldinvestor.com/2011/04/05/uses-of-nuclear-power-nuclear-transport-shipssubmarinesagriculturehuman-healthelectricityfuturistic-applications/http://www.freeinfosociety.com/images/science/nuclearenergy1.jpghttp://library.thinkquest.org/06aug/01335/nuclear.htmhttp://wanttoknowit.com/disadvantages-of-nuclear-power/http://wanttoknowit.com/advantages-of-nuclear-power/http://www.darvill.clara.net/altenerg/nuclear.htm#howhttp://www.greenworldinvestor.com/2011/04/05/uses-of-nuclear-power-nuclear-transport-shipssubmarinesagriculturehuman-healthelectricityfuturistic-applications/http://www.greenworldinvestor.com/2011/04/05/uses-of-nuclear-power-nuclear-transport-shipssubmarinesagriculturehuman-healthelectricityfuturistic-applications/http://www.greenworldinvestor.com/2011/04/05/uses-of-nuclear-power-nuclear-transport-shipssubmarinesagriculturehuman-healthelectricityfuturistic-applications/http://www.freeinfosociety.com/images/science/nuclearenergy1.jpg

Nuclear Energy (Source of Electricity)

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