Nuclear energy is a source of power. The history begins on November 8,1895. A man named Wilhelm Rontgen discovered it in his laboratory, when he saw a luminescent screen near a cathode tube.(Jeffrey Vohlers). Nuclear Energy could be good or bad thing, it could solve many problems, but also bring up new problems. One of the biggest risk in nuclear energy is nuclear meltdown.This is very bad because it could harm water supply. The problem that is being addressed is how nuclear energy affects the environment. Nuclear energy is energy released when enduring the process of nuclear fission or fusion; these processes are used to generate electricity. The problem with nuclear energy is during the lifespan of nuclear facilities, greenhouse gases are emitted during the construction, when the uranium ore is being mined and processed, and when the waste is being treated. The greenhouse gases that are being emitted from nuclear power can resort to the problem of global warming. Water vapor from the nuclear reactors can cause global warming because the vapor increases the Earth’s atmosphere temperature which causes the Earth to be warmer and the possibility of precipitation and clouds.(Blanket) during the lifecycle of nuclear facilities carbon dioxide is being emitted as well. During the lifecycle a nuclear reactor emits sixty six grams per kilowatt-hour of electricity. Nuclear power emits more greenhouse gases than renewable energy, for example biomass produces forty one grams per kilowatt hour.(Killie) Nuclear energy has been producing power for several decades in America. The existence of global warming has been around since the 1800’s but has come into a stronger view during the 1950’s. The first nuclear reactor was the Chicago Pile 1 (CP-1... ... middle of paper ... ...nuclear.org. World Nuclear Association, November 2013. Web. 5 November 2013. http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/Country-Profiles/Countries-T-Z/USA--Nuclear-Power/ N.p. “Outline History of Nuclear Energy." World Nuclear Association. World Nuclear Association, 10 2010. Web. 10 Oct 2010. . N.p. “Transport of Radioactive Materials.” World-nuclear.org. World Nuclear Association, n.p. Web. 11 November 2013. http://world-nuclear.org/info/Nuclear-Fuel-Cycle/Transport/Transport-of-Radioactive-Materials/ N.p. “What’s Energy Efficiency?” eetd.lbl.gov. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, n.p. Web. 7 November 2013. http://eetd.lbl.gov/ee/ee-2.html N.p. “What is Renewable Energy?” extension.psu.edu. Penn State Extension, n.p. Web. 5 November 2013. http://extension.psu.edu/natural-resources/energy/what
Nuclear power has grown to be a big percentage of the world’s energy. As of January 18, 2013 in 31 countries 437 nuclear power plant units with an installed electric net capacity of about 372 GW are in operation and 68 plants with an installed capacity of 65 GW are in 15 countries under construction. As of end 2011 the total electricity production since 1951 amounts to 69,760 billion kWh. The cumulative operating experience amounted to 15, 15,080 years by end of 2012. (European Nuclear Society) The change that nuclear power has brought to the world has led to benefits in today’s energy’s usage.
After the United States developed the atomic at the end of World War II, interest in nuclear technology increased exponentially. People soon realized that nuclear technology could be used for electricity, as another alternative to fossil fuels. Today, nuclear power has its place in the world, but there is still a lot of controversy over the use of nuclear energy. Things such as the containment of radiation and few nuclear power plant accidents have given nuclear power a bad image. However, nuclear power is a reliable source of energy because it has no carbon emissions, energy is available at any time, little fuel is needed for a lot of energy, and as time goes on, it is becoming safer and safer.
The production of nuclear energy is not as safe and clean as some say that it is. The Oxford Research Group released a report providing evidence that supports this point. It is clear that nuclear power plants do not produce a lot of carbon dioxide when they operate, but it is the mining of uranium and the storing of waste that produces the carbon dioxide pollution. This way of producing power is not as friendly to the environment as once thought. The report states that over time more carbon dioxide will be produced because more equipment and energy will be needed to extract uranium ore and store the waste. It is estimated by 2070 uranium nuclear power would produce as much carbon dioxide as a gas fired power station. If the use of nuclear power continues to increase this number would increase as well having a significant impact on global warming and the environment (Herbst).
Many believe that nuclear power plants are a hazard to the people that live around them and the environment in which they are built. However, these assumptions are based mostly on the fact that the nuclear reactors and nuclear power plants of today are built to the same standards that the old nuclear plants from many years ago. Nuclear power today is designed to be much safer than outdated nuclear power plants and have a very minimal chance of causing a nuclear catastrophe. Nuclear power plants are a safe and viable option for generating electricity for the foreseeable future.
Nuclear Energy is a method of creating electricity by heating water from nuclear reactions. The process allows for large quantities of electricity to be created from very little nuclear fuel. Nuclear Energy creates only a fraction of the world’s energy production; this is because many people are fearful of the possibility of a meltdown or any other form of a nuclear disaster. However, even with all the disadvantages and hazards Nuclear Energy creates, it could become the most beneficial form of energy in the future.
Nuclear energy is produced from the splitting of millions of uranium atoms in a very interesting process called fission. This type of process is used in big power plants where there are numerous tools and machinery that help produce the energy. From generators to pumps to turbines and transformers there are up to 12 main components that all come and work together to create high amounts of electricity. The fission process is used to produce a lot of heat and steam from the reactor where uranium rods are placed. That very hot steam then travels to big turbines and spins them through the generator to generate and produce high amounts of electricity. The electricity then travels to transformers and from there it travels through land wires that run hundreds of miles into cities and towns (World Nuclear Association [WNA], 2014).
Media coverage of such cases have made the public less comfortable with the idea of moving further towards nuclear power and they only opt for reducing human activities to reduce global warming. It is true that there have been some notable disasters involving nuclear power, but compared to other power systems, nuclear power has an impressive track record. First, it is less harmful and second, it will be able to cater for the growing world population. Nuclear power produces clean energy and it delivers it at a cost that is competitive in the energy market (Patterson). According to the US Energy Information Administration, there are currently 65 such plants in the Unite States (National Research Council). They produce 19 percent of the total US energy generation.
As our population increases, so will our demand for electricity. Air conditioners, computers, televisions, microwaves, and many other appliances have become necessities for Americans. All methods of producing electricity have drawbacks. As the earth becomes warmer, we must look for ways to decrease our use of fossil fuels. There are several ways to produce electricity without releasing air pollution. The most feasible method at this time is nuclear energy. Nuclear energy presents a safe, clean, and inexpensive alternative to other methods of producing electricity. Nuclear waste can either be reprocessed or disposed of safely, provided certain precautions are taken.
Nearly 75 years ago, man split the atom and ushered in an entirely new future for humans. Globally, nuclear power has had a positive and negative impact on society. As the demand for electricity increased during the 20th century into the 21st century nuclear energy provided a cleaner and cheaper resource as well as resulting in a positive impact on society by reducing dependence on fossil fuels and reducing air pollution related deaths.
Nuclear power plants produce nuclear waste or fission product which is still radioactive after splitting the original atom. “The large majority of the energy is released instantaneously but the rest of it comes out from the fission products over the years. That slowly released energy is what makes nuclear waste a hazard.” (Touran). That hazard can affect both humans and the environment which the waste is placed in. Nuclear waste is also hard to get rid of. The methods used take a long time to dispose the waste, especially high level waste. “High level waste decays into intermediate level waste over many thousands of years.” (Nuclear Power). Intermediate level is a high level of radiation which is hard to contain. Nuclear waste is a danger to the workers in these factories due to the health problems they could have. Also many other people can be affected by the radiation that are taking in. “Nuclear Power Plants cause between 600-1000 deaths a year per million people” (Nuclear Power Plant Accidents). These death of innocent people are just because of the usage of radiation. Nuclear waste is stored safely in containers in a pool just for the containers to reduce radiation (Nuclear Power). Although they are stored there radiation can still come out and the water used is now polluted. Today we are running the risk of having no more water. This is just using up more water were it can be used in a everyday life. Nuclear power plants should stop being used because all of the waste it produces and also because accidents can be
Turning on your light, making food in the oven, heating and cooling your house all require energy to work. Most likely you have something in your house powered by nuclear energy. Nuclear energy is reliable, sustainable, safe, and doesn’t affect the earth’s air quality. On the other hand, nuclear energy plants are costly, nuclear waste is detrimental to the environment if not taken care of properly, and again the plants can be dangerous as many people recollect on the major accidents at the Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, and Fukushima.
The use of nuclear energy has increased in the United States since 1973. Nuclear energy's share of U.S. electricity generation has grown from 4 percent in 1973 to 19 percent in 1998. This is excellent news for the environment. Nuclear energy and hydropower are the cleanest large-scale means of electricity production. Since nuclear power plants do not burn fuel, they emit no combustion byproducts—like carbon dioxide—into the atmosphere (www.nei.org). Nuclear power can come from the fission of Uranium, plutonium or thorium or the fusion of hydrogen into helium. Today uranium (U-235 and U-238) is most commonly used in the production of nuclear energy. The expa...
The energy produces less greenhouse gases that overheat our planet, which effectively fights our global warming issue. In source 2, it states “the amount of greenhouse gases have decreased by almost half because of the prevalence in the utilization of nuclear power. Nuclear energy has the least effect on nature since it doesn’t discharge any gases like methane and carbon dioxide, which are primary greenhouse gases.” Carbon dioxide and methane traps the sun’s heat into our atmosphere and while it is good in keeping us warm, too much of it causes a major problem. An opposing view argues that nuclear energy is harmful to our planet and can cause damaging effects to it.
Nuclear power, the use of exothermic nuclear processes to produce an enormous amount of electricity and heat for domestic, medical, military and industrial purposes i.e. “By the end of 2012 2346.3 kilowatt hours (KWh) of electricity was generated by nuclear reactors around the world” (International atomic energy agency Vienna, 2013, p.13). However, with that been said it is evident that the process of generating electricity from a nuclear reactor has numerous health and environmental safety issues.
The greatest disadvantages of nuclear energy are the risks posed to mankind and the environment by radioactive materials. ‘On average a nuclear plant annually generates 20 metric tons of used nuclear fuel cla...