NUCLEAR POWER

Presented by M. Antony Kishore A.R. Bharath

Department of Civil Engineering Paavai Engineering College

NUCLEAR POWER
INTRODUCTION The term nucleus is used in several different ways in the sciences, although all cases reference a critical structure found at the center of something. Almost all of the mass in an atom is made up from the protons and neutrons in the nucleus, with a very small contribution from the orbiting electrons. It was discovered in 1911, as a result of Ernest Rutherfords interpretation of the famous 1909 Rutherford experiment performed by Hans Geiger and Ernest Marsden, under the direction of Rutherford. An atomic nucleus is smaller than an atom. The cloud of electrons that "orbit" the nucleus and define the "size" of an atom is roughly 100,000 times as large as that atom's nucleus. The diameter of the nucleus is in the range of 1.75 fm (1.751015m) for hydrogen (the diameter of a single proton) to about 15 fm for the heaviest atoms, such as uranium. These dimensions are much smaller than the diameter of the atom itself (nucleus + electronic cloud), by a factor of about 23,000 (uranium) to about 145,000 (hydrogen).

NUCLEAR POWER Nuclear power is energy which is produced with the use of a controlled nuclear reaction. Nuclear power plants use the amazing power of the atom to generate electricity with a very low fuel cost and much less pollution than fossil fuel plants. Nuclear energy originates from the splitting of uranium atoms in a process called fission. At the power plant, the fission process is used to generate heat for producing steam, which is used by a turbine to generate electricity. Explanation Power derived from fission or fusion nuclear reactions. More

conventionally, nuclear power is interpreted as the utilization of the fission reactions in a nuclear power reactor to produce steam for electric power production, for ship propulsion. Fission reactions involve the breakup of the nucleus of high-mass atoms
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and yield an energy release which is more than a million fold greater than that obtained from chemical reactions involving the burning of a fuel. Successful control of the nuclear fission reactions utilizes this intensive source of energy. Fission reactions provide intensive sources of energy. For example, the fission of an atom of uranium yields about 200 MeV, whereas the oxidation of an atom of carbon releases only 4 eV. On a weight basis, this 50 10 6 energy ratio becomes about 2.5 106. Uranium consists of several isotopes, only 0.7% of which is uranium-235, the fissile fuel currently used in reactors. Even with these considerations, including the need to enrich the fuel to several percent uranium-235, the fission reactions are attractive energy sources when coupled with abundant and relatively cheap uranium ore. PROPERTIES The process of generation nuclear power starts with the mining and processing of uranium and other radioactive elements. These elements are used to feed the reactor of a nuclear power plant, generating a reaction known as fission which creates intense heat, turning water in the plant into steam. The steam powers steam turbines, which generate electricity and feed the electricity into the electrical grid. Uranium U Atomic number - 92 Atomic mass - 238.03 g.mol -1 Density - 18.95 g.cm-3 at 20C Melting point - 1132 C Boiling point - 3818 C Vanderwaals radius - 0.121 nm Ionic radius - 0.103 nm (+3) ; 0.093 nm (+4)
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Isotopes - 11 Electronc shell - [ Rn ] 5f3 6d1 7s2 Discovered by - Martin Klaproth 1789 Uranium is a fairly common element in the Earth's crust. Uranium is approximately as common as tin or germanium in Earth's crust, and is about 40 times more common than silver. Uranium is a constituent of most rocks, dirt and of the oceans. APPLICATIONS Environmental Safety The process to generate nuclear energy is one of the most cleanest, and makes lowest impact on the environment. It is because nuclear plants do not emit any harmful gases like carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide, produced from the conventional electricity power plants that threaten atmosphere by increasing global warming. The energy can hence be termed as emission-free energy. They require little space for the production, thus promoting land and habitat preservation. There is absolutely no effect on land, water and air resources.

Clean Water The water discharged from nuclear power plants is very safe, free of any radiation or harmful pollutants, and meets all regulatory standards. Hence, helps in protecting the aquatic life and conserving wildlife.

Reliable One utmost importance of nuclear energy, is reliability. The energy doesnt have to depend upon weather conditions, unpredictable costs or foreign supplies. Its a reliable source of energy even during extreme weather changes. The plants can run for about 500 to 700 days continuously, before they are shut down for refueling.
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Reduces the Dependence on Fossil Fuels There has been an increase in production and supply of fossil fuels like oil and gas, as the world has been using them at an unbelievable pace. Their deposits are emptying. On the other hand, nuclear energy requires very little quantity of fuel to produce large quantities of energy. Consider this, one ton of uranium can produce energy that is more than that of several million tons of coal and oil.

Peaceful Uses There have been great advances in using nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, such as medicinal use of isotopes and radiation techniques. One major on-going advancement is Sterile Insect Technique (SIT), that helps in large scale food irrigation and biological control of pests. Other various uses are:

Food and Agriculture The use of isotopes and radiation techniques in agriculture come under this category. Leading organizations have been working on the technology to increase agricultural production, improve food availability and quality, reduce production costs and minimize pollution of food crop.

Human Health One very common application of nuclear energy, is in the treatment of cancer radiotherapy. Also, small amounts of radioisotope tracers are used for diagnostic and research purposes. These techniques have helped in monitoring the levels of toxic substances in food, air and water.

Nuclear energy can also be used in industries for processing and sterilization of various products by means of radiation. Nuclear energy is surely the fuel for the 21st century. To conclude, nuclear energy has enormous benefits but, its up to humans to use it safely, and for peaceful purposes.

Benefits Among the many benefits of nuclear power, the main advantage this type of power has over other methods is that it is a clean way to produce energy as it does not result in the emission of any of the poisonous gases like carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide or nitrogen dioxide. In todays world when pollution of the atmosphere is one of our main worries, an option such as this is definitely preferable compared to burning of fossil fuels which causes so much of pollution. The disposal of nuclear waste which results during the generation of nuclear power is much easier because it is just dumped in to a geological site where it decays over a period of time and has no negative impact on the ecosystem. This turns out to be one of the main benefits of nuclear power as compared to the chemical waste like arsenic or mercury which refuse to decompose or poisonous gases which cause global warming, acid rain and smog. One of the main benefits of nuclear power is that it is an extremely reliable source of power because most nuclear reactors have a life cycle of 40 years which can be easily extended further for 20 more years. The availability of nuclear power is competitive compared to other sources of power like oil and gas since the cost of the nuclear fuel is a small part of the total reaction and therefore even if there is a slight fluctuation in the market the entire reaction need not be affected. The nuclear power is generated at a place which is known as the nuclear power station and this is a compact building which is as big as the area occupied by a football stadium.
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The biggest fear associated with nuclear power is the fear of radiation and this can only be overcome by educating the people about the method of radiation and its behavior. People would be surprised to know that radiation has been a part of our environment ever since its existence and that radiation in moderate amounts can even be advantageous to our health. Therefore, radiation need not be feared from but can be channeled appropriately to serve mankind in a positive way.

Disadvantages of Nuclear Energy Many nations use nuclear power plants to generate electricity for both civilian and military use, and some nations also utilize nuclear power to run parts of their naval fleets, especially submarines. Some people favor an expansion of nuclear power plants because this form of energy is considered cleaner than fossil fuels such as coal, although nuclear power comes with a number of problems which must be addressed, including the safe disposal of radioactive waste products.

Waste One of the biggest disadvantages of nuclear energy is the waste. Although the output of waste is relatively small, it releases harmful radiation as it decays. There is no method to get rid of the radioactivity of the waste or speed up the rate of decay. The waste must be sealed and buried in a safe location to prevent contamination of the environment and other people. Currently, there are no suitable locations that provide a permanent storage site for nuclear waste. Accidents Another one of the biggest disadvantages of nuclear energy is the occurrence of accidents due to core meltdown. These accidents happen when the core overheats and radiation products are allowed to escape the building. This contaminates the surrounding area with radioactive material that is very harmful people's health, often causing cancer.
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Cost Cost is also one of the major disadvantages of nuclear energy. It costs between three and five billion dollars just to build a nuclear power plant. Maintenance and operating costs are also high because lots of money must be sent on safety systems in case something goes wrong. Weapons One of the most feared disadvantages of nuclear energy is the potential for weapons. Each year, every nuclear reactor is capable of making enough plutonium to build over thirty nuclear bombs. Nuclear plants must be secured well enough to prevent this material from falling into the wrong hands.

NUCLEAR POWER PLANT:

NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS IN INDIA Currently, twenty nuclear power reactors produce 4,780.00 MW (2.9% of total installed base). Power station Kaiga Kakrapar Kalpakkam Narora Rawatbhata Operator State NPCIL NPCIL NPCIL NPCIL NPCIL Karnataka Gujarat Tamil Nadu Type PHWR PHWR PHWR Units 220 x 4 220 x 2 220 x 2 220 x 2 100 x 1 Total capacity (MW) 880 440 440 440 1180

Uttar Pradesh PHWR Rajasthan PHWR

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200 x 1 220 x 4 Tarapur NPCIL Maharashtra BWR (PHW 160 x 2 R) 540 x 2 Total 20 1400 4780

The projects under construction are: Power station Operator State Kudankulam NPCIL Kalpakkam Kakrapar Rawatbhata Banswara NPCIL NPCIL NPCIL NPCIL Type Units Total capacity (MW) 2000 500 1400 1400 1400 6700

Tamil Nadu VVER-1000 1000 x 2 Tamil Nadu PFBR Gujarat Rajasthan Rajasthan PHWR PHWR PHWR Total 500 x 1 700 x 2 700 x 2 700 x 2 8