Nuclear Energy!

Team 8:
Claudia Ciesielski-Listwan, Japjeet Mangat, Prabhjot Mukkar, Vineet Penumarthy, Vicky Wang.

Nuclear Power
o

o o

increasingly popular form of energy production Uranium-235 usually used as fuel unlike traditional form of energy production where fossil fuels such as coal are burned, rather, energy is produced from the controlled splitting, or fission, of uranium atoms

this is a nuclear reaction, occurring at the atomic level, thus nuclear power energy from this process is then used to heat water to produce steam, which then generates electricity advantages & disadvantages will be discussed advantages: clean, affordable, reliable disadvantages: non-renewable, negative effects of radiation, difficulty in waste disposal, possibility of nuclear disaster

Nuclear Reactions
o

nuclear energy is produced naturally, e.g. the heat and light of the sun are produced from nuclear fusion at its core

specifically, merging of hydrogen atoms that

have lost their electrons, i.e. protons
o

in nuclear reactors, the fission process is man-made

nuclei of U-235 atoms are unstable thus

easily split when bombarded by neutrons once the nucleus is split, multiple neutrons are released which then collide with other nuclei this is a chain reaction, and is self-sustaining

nuclear reactions follow Einsteins Mass Energy Formula, that E = mc where E = energy released, m = mass
defect and c = speed of light thus, energy released is directly proportional to the mass defect small masses can produce large amounts of energy, as m is multiplied by the huge number 3 x 108 m/s squared

The Uranium Atom

o o o

o o

heaviest naturally occurring element, is found on Earth's crust found in different isotopes, i.e. different number of neutrons in the nucleus naturally occurring mostly as U-238 (making up 99.3% of the reserves) and U235 (the other 0.7%); rarely U-234 (less than 0.001%) deposits of Uranium ore are mined; Australia has the largest orebody due to potential misuse for weapons development, Uranium is only sold and exported to countries that are a part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty

The S i the rl l r est supplier f er i l uclear power plants o It has over licensed plants and in 6, s ( uclear ower plants) produced of the countr s ener about
o

France has the second most nuclear power plants in the world with around 50 plants that produce about 79% of its electricity output There are 5 countries that operate a total of 430 nuclear reactors of which, 250 are used for research and the other 180 are used to power ships, submarines, etc

440 commercial nuclear reactors operating in 30 countries with 37 , 000 MWe (Megawatt electrical) total capacity o All the nuclear power plants in the world produce about 17% of the worlds electricity
o

Nuclear power plants produce about 50% of Ontarios electricity o Two of the plants that produce the most electricity are owned by OPG (Ontario Power Generation). These plants are Pickering Nuclear and Darlington Nuclear o Together, these two stations are capable of producing , 00 megawatts
o

Nuclear energy is used for electricity o It is the second most used resource besides coal o Nuclear propulsion is how nuclear energy is used to drive ships o Nuclear energy is also used in medicinal purposes for things like giving x-rays faster
o

The Distribution of Costs in a Nuclear Power Plant and How it Attains its Profits

Expenses
o

Construction Costs o The cost of building a nuclear power plant is 1 billion dollars because of the employment of 20,000 workers, a design team, and a license. Operating Costs o Because nuclear energy has proven to be cost effective in production, nuclear power plants are charge about 0.2 cents KW/H Waste disposal costs o Because nuclear waste has proven to be a threat to the environment, the cost of disposing nuclear waste has climbed to about 10% of the construction cost/year The cost of decommissioning the plant o This is when the nuclear plant decides to shut down, the cost is approximately 300 million dollars.

Profits
Profits are made through contracts of nuclear energy o The more contracts and production level, the stock price of nuclear energy rises. o Thus, investors have a first hand at rising profits in these nuclear power plants.
o

Consumption of Nuclear Energy Used in Ontario

Nuclear energy was the most used type of energy in Ontario About 52% of energy consumption comes from Nuclear energy

Nuclear Coal Hydroelectric Gas

Source: Ontario Power Generation http://www.opg.com/power/nuclear/

Consumption of Nuclear Energy Used Internationally

In contrast however, in the world, nuclear energy is one of the lowest This is changing, however, as nuclear energy is becoming an increasingly popular and environmental energy source.

Source: European Energy forum http://www.europeanenergyforum.eu/archives/europeanenergy-forum/nuclear-matters/countering-climatechange-nuclear-energy-as-an-element-of-the-solution

What is a Nuclear Reactor?

o

A Nuclear Reactor is a device where nuclear chain reactions are initiated, controlled and sustained. It converts nuclear energy into heat and generates electrical power.

Source: Softpedia http://news.softpedia.com/newsImage/NuclearReactor-Opens-for-Study-2.jpg/

Types of Nuclear Reactors

1.

Pressured Water Reactors

y Controlled by high pressure liquid water, this reactor

releases steam to generate turbines. This is the most popular and most reliable.

2.

Boiling Water Reactors

y uses a pressure vessel at a lower pressure

but also creates steams. This is more stable because the thermal efficiency is higher.
3.

Pressured Heavy water reactors

y a single large pressure vessel is replaced

with hundreds of smaller pressure tubes and is fueled by natural uranium

Types of Nuclear Reactors Cont.

4.

Gas Cooled Reactor

y graphite moderated and CO2, this is highly

thermal efficient

5.

Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactor

y produces more fuel than its consumed and a

high pressure not required to run the pressure system.

High Power Channel Reactor

y Uses cool water and a graphite moderator

but is very unstable and large (caused the Chernobyl accident)

Environmental Damage and the Effect on People

Three Mile Island

The Three-Mile Island accident was the second greatest accident in history In 1979, a cooling malfunction caused part of the core to melt in the second reactor Some radio-active gas was leaked a few days after the incident, but not enough to cause harm to local residents or the environment No injuries or adverse health effects were caused from the Three Mile Island accident

Chernobyl

The greatest accident regarding nuclear energy to have ever occurred 198 It was the result of a flaw in the reactor design and was monitored by personnel inadequate in training The steam explosion that resulted released 5% of the radioactive reactor core into the atmosphere Two plant works died on the day of the accident. 28 other people died within a few weeks as a result of radiation poisoning. Increase in thyroid cancers in local population Resettlement of areas needed

Radioactive Waste

Nuclear waste is radioactive waste left over from nuclear reactors, nuclear research, and nuclear weapons production It is divided into low, medium and high-level waste depending on the radioactivity Radioactive waste has a long life span and the rate of decay is quite slow It can last anywhere from a few hundred thousand years to a few million The threat to the environment and people only increases with the amount of waste being produced

Types of Radiation

Radiation
1902

-Frederick Soddy stated that radioactivity is the result of a natural change in atoms, more specifically, the change of isotope of one element into an isotope of another element The three most common types of radiation are; Alpha, Beta, & Gamma

Alpha Radiation

A heavy, short-range particle an ejected Helium nucleus Most alpha radiation is unable to penetrate human skin Harmful to humans if the material emitting the radiation is inhaled, swallowed or absorbed through open wounds It is only able to travel a short , a few inches in air Alpha radiation is unable to penetrate clothing

Beta Radiation

A light, short range particle an ejected electron It can travel several feet in air It is able to penetrate human skin. If the contaminate stays on the skin for a prolonged period of time, it can cause injury It is harmful internally to the body Clothing provides some protection against beta radiation

Gamma Radiation

Highly penetrating electromagnetic radiation Able to travel many feet in air, and several inches in human tissue Dense materials are needed for protection Excited atoms release photons photons are packets of energy The release of energy brings the atom to a more stable state Gamma radiation often triggers release of Alpha and Beta radiation

What is it?
o

Social movement that opposes the use of Nuclear Technologies

The United States used nuclear weapons against Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. Since then, despite calls for their use in the Korean and Vietnamese conflicts and concerns about their employment during the Cuban missile crisis, no nuclear weapon has been fired in anger. Although the victors of World War II regarded the atomic bomb as the winning weapon and expected it to keep the peace, many people considered it an immoral weapon.

Direct action groups, environmental groups and professional organizations have identified themselves with the movement at the local, national and international level.
o Groups include: Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, Friends

of the Earth, Greenpeace, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, and the Nuclear Information and Resource Service.

How did the Anti-Nuclear Movement come to be?

As Cold War tensions escalated in the 1950s, many women within the peace movement became involved in the anti-nuclear campaign. One area of concern was the creation of nuclear and foreign military bases in Australia. Twenty years later in central Australia, 700 Indigenous and white women from across the country established a peace camp at Pine Gap to protest against the US intelligence base.

 Americans favor nuclear energy. The long-term transformation in public opinion on nuclear energy is striking: Those in favor moved from 49 percent in 1983, when the question was first asked, to 74 percent today. Those who strongly favor nuclear energy now outnumber those who are strongly opposed by more than three to one 33 percent strongly favor compared with 10 percent who are strongly opposed.

The public is increasingly confident in the safety of nuclear power plants. In 1984, 35 percent gave high ratings (5to-7) to the safety of nuclear power plants on a 1-to-7 scale. Today that number is 73 percent more than double with just 10 percent giving nuclear power plants a low safety rating (1-to-3).

Opinions by Political Party

Although Republicans are more favorable to nuclear energy than Democrats, both believe that their own partys representatives are the most favorable to building more nuclear power plants.

Bibliography

"Chernobyl | Chernobyl Accident | Chernobyl Disaster." World Nuclear Association | Nuclear Power - a Sustainable Energy Resource. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.worldnuclear.org/info/chernobyl/inf07.html>. "OECD: Nuclear Waste." OECD: Homepage. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.environmentalindicators.com/htdocs/indicators/1 3nucl.htm>. "What Types of Radiation Are There?." Health Physics Society. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.hps.org/publicinformation/ate/faqs/radiationtypes .html>. "What is Nuclear Waste?." wiseGEEK: clear answers for common questions. N.p., n.d. Web. <http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-nuclear-waste.htm>. "Three Mile Island | TMI 2 |Three Mile Island Accident.." World Nuclear Association | Nuclear Power - a Sustainable Energy Resource. N.p., n.d. <http://www.worldnuclear.org/info/inf3 .html>.

World Nuclear University, (2007, September). The Need for Nuclear. Retrieved July 1 , 2009, from World Nuclear Association Web site: http://www.world-nuclear.org/ Donald, Achive. (2003, April 1 ). Economics of nuclear energy. Retrieved from http://www.worldnuclear.org/info/inf02.html Bacon, Eva. "The Anti-Nuclear Campaign." The University of Queensland. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Jan. 2011. <www.library.uq.edu.au/fryer/worth_fighting/5.html>. "Nuclear Energy Institute - Perspective on Public Opinion, June 2010 ." Nuclear Energy Institute - Clean-Air Energy . N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Jan. 2011. <http://www.nei.org/resourcesandstats/documentlibrary/publi cations/perspectiveonpublicopinion/perspective-on-publicopinion-june-2010/>.