Compare and Contrast of Nuclear Energy and Alternative Energy Standard Number Science 3.4.A Today our society is using more energy than ever. With the increase in demand for energy, problems are presented that have to be addressed. One of the biggest and most prevalent problems is the need for clean, renewable, sustainable energy. On the forefront of these problems comes the following solutions: nuclear energy, hydro-electric energy, and photovoltaic energy. With the need of energy in today’s current world, exploring different ways of producing power are necessary. The differences and similarities of nuclear energy and alternative energy are important to look over and examine in depth, so that it is plain to see the positive and negative effects of energy production. To begin, nuclear power is produced by nuclear fission, which is the splitting of an atom to start a chain reaction (“11 Facts”). This chain reaction produces massive amounts of heat. Nuclear reactors take advantage of this heat by pumping water into the reactor, which in turn produces steam. The steam then becomes pressurized through a pipeline and exits into a turbine (“How do Nuclear”). The pressurized steam causes the turbine blades to spin, producing power which is linked to a generator for use in the main power lines. When the steam passes the turbine blades, it goes past cooled pipes and condensates (“How do Nuclear”). After the condensation process is finished and the steam reverts back to water, it is pumped into the reactor again, thus completing the process of producing nuclear-based power. Next, hydro-electricity is electricity produced by moving water, flowing past a turbine connected to a generator (“Hydropower”). According to Nationalgeographic.c... ... middle of paper ... ...>. “How do Nuclear Plants Work?” Duke Energy. n. d. Web. 10 April 2014. . “How do solar cells work?” physics. n. d. Web. 3 April 2014. . “Hydroelectric Power” Alt Energy. n. d. Web. 8 April 2014. . “Hydropower” National Geographic. n. d. Web. 1 April 2014. profile/.> “Hydropower as a Renewable Energy Source” naturalresources.house.gov. Web. 1 May 2014. . “PV Report” www.ise.fraunhofer.de. 11 December 2012. Web. 1 May 2014 report.pdf>.
After World War II, nuclear power became the world’s shining energy hope. Technically it is produced when neutrons split the nucleus of uranium atoms releasing heat which is used to boil water and produce the steam that drives a plant’s turbines. Nuclear...
Nuclear Power comes from the process of splitting Uranium Atoms (also called fission), which in turn releases copious amounts of energy in the form of heat. When the atoms are arranged in a reactor, the splitting of an atom will cause nearby atoms to split, forming a chain reaction. As the energy is released, it is sent through coolant tanks full of water, which is then heated into steam. The steam is channeled and used to spin a turbine, which in turn powers a generator,
Central Idea: Nuclear energy only contributes a small amount to the world’s electricity yet it has hazards and dangers that far out-way its benefits. There are many other alternative power producing sources that can produce energy more efficiently and more safely than nuclear power plants can.
Nuclear power, or nuclear energy, is the use of exothermic nuclear processes,[1] to generate useful heat and electricity. The term includes nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion. Presently the nuclear fission of elements in the actinide series of the periodic table produce the vast majority of nuclear energy in the direct service of humankind, with nuclear decay processes, primarily in the form of geothermal energy, and radioisotope thermoelectric generators, in niche uses making up the rest. Nuclear (fission) power stations, excluding the contribution from naval nuclear fission reactors, provided about 5.7% of the world's energy and 13% of the world's electricity in 2012.[2] In 2013, the IAEA report that there are 437 operational nuclear power reactors,[3] in 31 countries,[4] although not every reactor is producing electricity.[5] In addition, there are approximately 140 naval vessels using nuclear propulsion in operation, powered by some 180 reactors.[6][7][8] As of 2013, attaining a net energy gain from sustained nuclear fusion reactions, excluding natural fusion power...
Alternative energy sources are renewable, and is most commonly referred to as free energy sources. There are many alternative energy sources such as hydro power, solar power, wind, biomass, and geothermal. Using alternative sources is more expensive in the long run, but it is the much safer option for our environment compared to fossil fuels. Although everything used is completely free, such as water and wind, the equipment used to generate these things are expensive. There are several pros and cons that come with the utilization of alternative energy sources.
Nuclear power plants go through a heat generated process of fission to create its electricity. This means that the neutrons split into uranium atoms to produce large amounts of energy (EPA, n.d. para.2). The process coverts water into steam which then drives a turbine to create electricity. The steam is formed when the uranium atoms split (fission). It goes through this process in a closed contained environment. In the United States there are two types of nuclear reactors, the Pressurized Water Reactor (PWRs) and the Boiling Water Reactor (BWRs). In the Pressurized water reactors the water does not boil, the water is circulated through tubes in the steam generators (Duke energy, n.d.para.2). In the Boiling Water Reactor the water will be heated by fission and it boils and uses the steam to turn the turbine generator. In both of the reactors the water can be used over and over again in the process (Duke energy, n.d.para.3). Danger that can come from a nuclear power plant is exposure to radiation. The plant can release radioactive material to the environment by a plume of radioactive gases and ...
Depending on progress of technology of the countries’ energy consumption is increasing day by day. Countries have started to use different kinds of energy sources like hydropower, solar, wind, waves and nuclear energy except fuel foils to close their energy gaps. Especially in the developed countries all of the hydroelectric production capacity has almost used yet the alternative energy sources such as solar, wind, geothermal and biomass is limited. Using fossil fuels or coal cause many problems such as environment and air pollution. Because of these limitations governments have directed to use nuclear energy sources. The main advantages of the nuclear energy are the cheapest price, low environmental pollution and long lasting source of the reserves. This paper discussed the advantages and the disadvantages of the nuclear energy which is used as an indispensable energy source in France, Germany, Italy, UK, USA, and some Scandinavian countries, Russia and many other countries. In this essay, it is claimed that in this c...
Nuclear energy is energy that is released by reactions within the atomic nuclei, through nuclear fission or fusion. Nuclear energy is also called atomic energy (dictionary.com, 2013). Nuclear energy is produced in nuclear power plants. Nuclear power plants create electricity by heating water to create steam. The steam runs a generator that creates the electricity. Many types of fuels can be used to create heat and generate steam. Nuclear power plants create the heat by splitting atoms. Nuclear power plants use a radioactive element found in rocks called enriched uranium. Enriched uranium is used because when it breaks down in nature it heats Earth’s crust. In nuclear power plants enriched uranium heats water to create steam. Power plants create energy by splitting the nuclei inside each granule of uranium. This process is called nuclear fission (How does energy work, 2013).
As a source of energy, nuclear energy provides a safer alternative, for the production of energy for large-scale consumption. There are two different types of nuclear energy; nuclear fission and nuclear fusion. Nuclear fission is the process in which a nucleus spits into two or more smaller nuclei. Nuclear fusion is the process in which two nuclei fuse together to form a larger nuclei. Nuclear reactors can become unstable creating an uncontrollable nuclear reaction. The effects of this can be seen in Chernobyl. Reactors have been designed safer after this disaster.
A nuclear power plant is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. That nuclear power plant is similar to that of conventional power plant where the boiler is replaced by a nuclear reactor. As is typical in all conventional thermal power stations the heat is used to generate steam which drives a steam turbine connected to a generator which produces electricity. In a typical nuclear reactor the reactor core acts as heat exchanger, as the heat is generated by nuclear reaction, the generated heat is transferred to the primary cooling medium which is heavy water (D2O). Outside the reactor core, the primary coolant exchanges heat with the secondary fluid (water) to generate steam to be used in...
Nuclear energy is capable of producing mass amounts of clean energy, but how? Nuclear reactors function similarly to a typical power plant in which heat converts water into steam that in the end turns a generator, producing electricity. However, in the common power plant, heat is
...ed the water begins to boil and steam is produced. When the steam is produced is moved up towards the reactor opening, as it moves up the steam passes through turbines that spin creating energy. The turbines begin to move which is what produces the energy. During this process a lot of steam is produced which is why so much power is created.
So how does nuclear power plant works? Uranium is split and is used to boil water to produce steam so that the generator will work. So this is the diagram of the nuclear power plant.
The first type of renewable energy is hydroelectric energy or well known as hydropower. In greek word, hydro means water and thus hydroelectric energy refers to electricity generated using flowing water at high velocity. Lutgens and Tarbuck (1992, p. 163) stated that “running water is of great importance to people as we depend upon rivers for energy, travel and irrigation”. Continuous availability of water in universe made water to be the main source of hydroelectric energy. Water has been widely utilized by mankind since the beginning of civilization and wate...
Nuclear energy is generated by a process called fission. Fission occurs within the reactor of a nuclear power plant when a neutron is fired at an atom of uranium causing it to split and release subsequent neutrons.1 These are able to crash into other uranium atoms causing a chain reaction and releasing a great deal of heat energy.