Uranium (nuclear) Nuclear energy is energy in the nucleus (core) of an atom.

Atoms are tiny particles that make up every object in the universe. There is enormous energy in the bonds that hold atoms together. Nuclear energy can be used to make electricity. But first the energy must be released. It can be released from atoms in two ways: nuclear fusion and nuclear fission. In nuclear fusion, energy is released when atoms are combined or fused together to form a larger atom. This is how the sun produces energy. In nuclear fission, atoms are split apart to form smaller atoms, releasing energy. Nuclear power plants use nuclear fission to produce electricity.

Nuclear Fuel Atoms are made up of three major particles: protons, neutrons and electrons. The most common fissionable atom is an isotope (the specific member of the atom's family) of uranium known as uranium235 (U-235 or U 235 ), which is the fuel used in most types of nuclear reactors today. Although uranium is quite common, about 100 times more common than silver, U-235 is relatively rare.

Nuclear power plants generate electricity Most power plants burn fuel to produce electricity, but not nuclear power plants. Instead, nuclear plants use the heat given off during fission as fuel. Fission takes place inside the reactor of a nuclear power plant. At the center of the reactor is the core, which contains the uranium fuel. The uranium fuel is formed into ceramic pellets. The pellets are about the size of your fingertip, but each one produces the same amount of energy as 150 gallons of oil. These energy-rich pellets are stacked end-to-end in 12-foot metal fuel rods. A bundle of fuel rods is called a fuel assembly. Fission generates heat in a reactor just as coal generates heat in a boiler. The heat is used to boil water into steam. The steam turns huge turbine blades. As they turn, they drive generators that make electricity. Afterward, the steam is changed back into water and cooled in a separate structure at the power plant called a cooling tower. The water can be used again and again.

Types of reactors Just as there are different approaches to designing and building airplanes and automobiles, engineers have developed different types of nuclear power plants. Most popular of them are: boiling-water reactors (BWRs), and pressurized-water reactors (PWRs). In the BWR, the water heated by the reactor core turns directly into steam in the reactor vessel and is then used to power the turbine-generator. In a PWR, the water passing through the reactor core is kept under pressure so that it does not turn to steam at all -- it remains liquid. Steam to drive the turbine is generated in a separate piece of equipment called a steam generator. A steam generator is a giant cylinder with thousands of tubes in it through which the hot radioactive water can flow. Outside the tubes in the steam generator, nonradioactive water (or clean water) boils and eventually turns to steam. The clean water may come from one of several sources: oceans, lakes or rivers. The radioactive water flows back to the reactor core, where it is reheated, only to flow back to the steam generator. Nuclear reactors are basically machines that contain and control chain reactions, while releasing heat at a controlled rate. In electric power plants, the reactors supply the heat to turn water into steam, which

drives the turbine-generators. The electricity is shipped or distributed through transmission lines to homes, schools, hospitals, factories, office buildings, rail systems and other customers. Nuclear Steam Supply System:

The reactor core is composed of four main elements: THE FUEL. Nuclear fuel consists of pellets of enriched uranium dioxide encased in 12-foot long pencilthick metal tubes, called fuel rods. These fuel rods are bundled to form fuel assemblies. A nuclear plant can operate continuously for up to 2 years. To run this long, a reactor must have as many as 100 to 300 fuel assemblies. THE CONTROL RODS. The control rods contain material that regulates the rate of the chain reaction. If they are pulled out of the core, the reaction speeds up. If they are inserted, the reaction slows down. THE COOLANT. A coolant, usually water, is pumped through the reactor to carry away the heat produced by the fissioning of the fuel. This is comparable to the water in the cooling system of a car, which carries away the heat built up in the engine. In a reactor, as much as 330,000 gallons of water flow through the reactor core every minute to carry away the heat. THE MODERATOR. A moderator, water, slows down the speed at which atoms travel. This reduction in speed actually increases the opportunity to split, thereby releasing energy. Although engineering designs are quite complex, these four elements -- the fuel, the control rods, the coolant and the moderator -- are the basic components of a nuclear reactor.

Nuclear power and the environment Like all industrial processes, nuclear power generation has by-product wastes: radioactive waste and heat. Nuclear generated electricity does not emit carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Radioactive wastes are the principal environmental concern for nuclear power. Most nuclear waste is

low-level nuclear waste. It is ordinary trash, tools, protective clothing, wiping cloths and disposable items that have been contaminated with small amounts of radioactive dust or particles. These materials are subject to special regulation that govern their storage so they will not come in contact with the outside environment. On the other hand the irradiated fuel assemblies are highly radioactive and must be stored in specially designed pools resembling large swimming pools (water cools the fuel and acts as a radiation shield) or in specially designed dry storage containers. Most nuclear fuel is stored under water. A few reactors store their older and less radioactive fuel in dry storage facilities outside using special concrete or steel containers with air cooling. Uranium

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports that nuclear power is generated from a relatively rare form of uranium, U-235, a non-renewable natural resource found in the United States, Australia, Canada, Africa and South America. Students can research the mining and extraction process to create a flow chart of the steps it goes through as it is converted to fuel.

Fission

Green-Planet-Solar-Energy explains how the atom of U-235 splits into krypton and barium, releasing three super-fast moving neutrons that set off a chain reaction that produces the heat and converts it to electricity. Uranium South Australia suggests having students locate uranium on the periodic chart and build a model or draw a diagram of an atom to illustrate the fission process. Energy Quest's Chain Reaction experiment provides a visual demonstration of how the chain reaction and control rods operate.

Nuclear Reactors

The Energy for Sustainable Development Bulgaria website states, "Nuclear reactors are basically machines that contain and control chain reactions, while releasing heat at a controlled rate." Students can use Kennesaw State University's Nuclear Power Plant Simulation to familiarize themselves with the inner workings of a nuclear reactor and the controls that keep it from spinning out of control.

Mining, Waste and Safety

Uranium mining operations leave a significant residue of radioactive waste on the ground, the World Almanac for Kids advises. The EIA warns that"the waste can remain dangerous to human health for thousands of years." Put students in pairs or groups and ask them to imagine that a nuclear power plant is being built near their town. Have them research the types of nuclear waste, the hazards generated from them and the protective regulations that exist to guard humans and the environment from radioactive contamination. Convene a "nuclear advisory committee" and let each group present their facts and recommendations for the safe handling of nuclear waste.

Nuclear stations have several advantages over other ways to make electricity:

they can run at full power for many months at a time

they can make enormous amounts of power from a small amount of fuel. Just one station can provide enough power for a city

they do not themselves produce any greenhouse gases and so don't cause global warming. Nor do they pollute the atmosphere with smoke containing sulphur and nitrogen oxides unlike coal plants, so they don't cause acid rain acts about Radiation Radiation is scary because no one can tell its there without special detectors. Animals like you and me have senses which means we can see, hear, touch, taste, smell but we cant tell if something is radioactive. Waste products from making nuclear bombs and from nuclear power plants are very radioactive indeed. If you happened to fall into a nuclear reactor, you would die almost instantly. Lower radiation levels can also make people die over a matter of days or, by causing illnesses like cancer, over a period of years. Radiation comes from new elements (uranium fuel is an element; so is carbon and so is oxygen) which get made during nuclear reactions. The radioactive isotopes of these elements, often only exist for a few weeks or years. But some last for hundreds of thousands of years which is why no one really knows what to do about getting rid of them. Radioactive isotopes have what's called a half-life. Radioactive isotopes with short half-lives quickly disappear by spewing out streams of tiny particles which travel very fast. This is radiation and its dangerous to life like you and me. So if you stand near something radioactive, youre being hit by trillions of tiny bullets all the time. You cant feel it but these bullets damage the cells in your body. A lot of damage breaks them and you die. Less damage messes up their genes and causes cancer and kills you slowly. Like I said, nasty stuff.