What My Final Has Taught Me

This final project has been extremely educational for a variety of reasons. The poster presentation gave me an incentive to research and learn about nuclear energy. The first time I heard the term was when President Bush threatened Saddam Hussein to admit his possession of nuclear weapons. The topic came up again when Bush accused Iran of uranium enrichment for weaponry. Not only is the topic of nuclear energy relevant to our course, but as an international affairs major its important that I understand nuclear energy because it's a currently an issue of international debate. All in all, I enjoyed learning about nuclear technology.

Here's an excerpt from my section of the poster...

Nuclear energy specifically utilized for generating electrical power has two substantial advantages: it is sustainable and clean. Nuclear technology is sustainable because its fuel is abundant enough to last for centuries and it is clean because its generation and consumption essentially does not emit greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. It has been technologically proven that nuclear power has the capacity to provide clean and sustainable energy on a global scale because not only are these technologies readily available, they are potent enough to meet global energy demands.

Today approximately 440 nuclear reactors provide about 16% of the world’s electrical energy and 20% of the United States’ electricity.



PRODUCTION OF ELECTRICAL ENERGY

The nuclear reactor is the heart of a nuclear power plant. Its basic function is to preserve a fission chain reaction in order to extract its valuable energy. More specifically, nuclear reactors are responsible for fissioning uranium, which yields the thermal energy that produces the high-pressure steam that drives a turbine connected to an electric generator. This steam is condensed using a nearby body of water, and this cycle continues. Cooling towers release waste heat into atmosphere to avoid thermal pollution of the water sources.

All the nuclear plant reactors in the United States are light-water reactors (LWRs), which means it utilizes H20 as both the moderator and coolant. In order to maintain the multiplication factor at one neutron, a moderator slows down the neutrons. Water is an exemplary moderator because the single protons in the hydrogen collide with the neutrons thereby reducing their speed. Water is also an effective coolant because it successfully captures the energy of the random thermal motion and transports it to the turbines where it works to produce electricity. The control rods are neutron-absorbing substances found between the uranium fuel rods. They are responsible for maintaining the multiplication rate at one by either increasing or decreasing the reaction rate.

The pressure vessel contains the nuclear fuel and the water circulates among the fuel rods in order to slow the neutrons for more effective fission and remove the thermal energy generated by the fission. About one-third of power reactors are boiling-water reactors (BWRs) and the rest are pressurized water reactors (PWRs). BWRs allow the water in the reactor vessel to boil, while PWRs maintain the mildly radioactive water at a high pressure so it does not boil. A steam generator moves the heated water from the reactor to a secondary pipe system containing boiling water, which in turn drive the turbines.