Nuclear Energy

Jovan Lee, Daryl Wong, Davin Chua, Li Ying Ming, Weng Pei He

How does nuclear energy work?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJfIbBDR3e8

How does nuclear energy work?

Nuclear plants produce energy through nuclear fission

Process of splitting an atom into two

Generating an intense amount of energy in the process,

Older power plants burn coal.

Uranium undergoes nuclear fission daily at an extremely slow pace

Thus emitting radiation

How does nuclear energy work?

Suitable for nuclear power plants

Which require induced fission.

Uranium of the variety U-235

Crucial for nuclear power plant energy production

U-235 undergoes natural alpha radiation

The throwing off a alpha particle

How does nuclear energy work?

Using free neutron,

U-235 nucleus absorb the neutron and split immediately (induced nuclear fusion)

Splitting an atom releases intense heat and gamma radiation,

However, scientists have to first enrich uranium

So it contains approximately 3% of U-235 uranium,

Sufficient for a nuclear power plant.

Advantages of nuclear energy

Lowest Impact on the Environment

Nuclear energy produced no controlled air pollutants because it does not require burning

Highest energy production relative to environmental impact

Advantages of Nuclear Energy

Operation

Nuclear Reactors designed to run for a long time before needing to be shut down for quality checks and maintenance.

Operate continuously for an average of 540 days.

Advantages of Nuclear Energy

Cost

Generally low-cost and produce predictable levels of energy

Comparison with other generators

Name Cents/kilowatt-hour

Nuclear 1.83

Coal 2.07

Oil 3.24

Gas 3.52

Advantages of Nuclear Energy

Safety

Working in Nuclear Power Plants actually very safe

Number of fatalities per 200,000 worker hours for nuclear industry is 0.26 while the fatalities for the private industry is 3.1 per 200k worker hours.

Advantages of Nuclear Energy

Radiation

Living next-door to a nuclear power plant for a year would result in less radiation exposure than a than a flight from NYC to LA.

It would take 2000 years living next to a reactor to be exposed to the same amount of radiation in an x-ray.

Contribution to world’s fuel consumption

About 11-12% of the world’s energy source is nuclear.

About 30 countries are operating over 430 nuclear reactors.

Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy

Disposal

Disposing waste PERMANENTLY is very difficult

Waste remains radioactive for thousands of years

Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy

Leakages

Common occurance

Higher than normal lvl of radioactivity recorded in Irish Sea

Due to leakages from Nuclear Waste Disposal Plant at Sellafield in England

Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy

Major Accidents or Explosion at Nuclear Power Plant

Nuclear can be used for destructive purposes

Case Study- India

Growth rate 1.7%/year

Rising Demand for Energy

India to expand Nuclear Energy Programme

Case Study- India

Why Nuclear?

High Cost of Coal

High Emission of CO2 & Greenhouse gases from Fossil Fuels Power Stations

Has large reserves of Thorium, fuel similar to Uranium

Necessary Raw Materials

Case Study- India

14 Operating Reactions in 5 different locations

Operated by State Run Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL)

3% India Energy from Nuclear

Plans 7-10% supply by 2020

Case Study- India

Radioactive Leak from Tarapur Nuclear Plant in 1992

Released 12 Curies of Radioactivity

2009, 55 employers consumer radioactive materials from waters

Untreated waters found its way to a water cooler in a Nuclear Plant