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5/5/14 - QOTD

5/5/14 - QOTD. Where is Chernobyl located? A. Russia B. Ukraine C. Germany D. United States. CHAPTER 13: E-N-E-R-G-Y. 13-4: What are the advantages and disadvantages of Nuclear Energy?. Conventional Nuclear Power Plants.

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5/5/14 - QOTD

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  1. 5/5/14 - QOTD • Where is Chernobyl located? • A. Russia • B. Ukraine • C. Germany • D. United States

  2. CHAPTER 13: E-N-E-R-G-Y 13-4: What are the advantages and disadvantages of Nuclear Energy?

  3. Conventional Nuclear Power Plants • Uses heat produced by a controlled nuclear chain reaction to boil water to produce steam that turns a turbine to produce electricity

  4. FISSION REACTION • Light Water Reactors (85% of world’s reactors) • Control rods are moved in and out of the reactor core to absorb neutrons controlling the rate of reaction

  5. 2) A water coolant circulates through the reactor’s core to regulate the temperature avoiding a meltdown

  6. 3) Containment Vessel is built to surround the reactor core to contain any meltdowns or external catastrophes

  7. 4) Storage of used fuel (yearly) is contained in water-filled pools or concrete casks (used fuel rods are dangerously radioactive for up to 240,000 years)

  8. Nuclear Fuel Cycle • Mining Uranium • Processing and Enriching Uranium for fuel • Using the Fuel for 1 year • Safely storing the spent fuel • Retiring the entire nuclear power plant Only 20% surplus of energy

  9. Does Nuclear Power Live up to its Hype? • 1950s experts thought that nuclear power was going to end the need for fossil fuels • By 1973 no new power plants were constructed

  10. What Happened? • Costs too much to build • Costs too much to operate • Poor Management • Malfunctions • Safety Concerns and accidents (3-mile Island and Chernobyl) • Nowadays, concerns over terrorist attacks • Same technology to produce nuclear weapons

  11. Nuclear Power Advantages • Large Fuel Supply • Low Environmental Impact • Emits 1/6 the carbon dioxide as coal • Moderate land disruption and water pollution • Moderate land use • Low risk of accidents because of multiple safety systems Disadvantages • Cannot compete economically without huge government subsidies • Low net energy yield • High environmental impact if accident occurs • Environmental costs not included in market price • Risk of catastrophic accident • No widely acceptable solution for long-term storage of radioactive waste • Subject to terrorist attacks • Spreads knowledge and technology for building nuclear weapons

  12. Storing Radioactive Waste is a BIG Problem • After 10 years a spent fuel rod could kill a person in 3 minutes standing 3 feet away! • 2002 Yucca Mountain, Nevada storage site • $100 billion project not yet off the ground due to legal battles • Scientists do not think it is a good site because of water and seismic activity

  13. Worn Out Nuclear Power Plants • Corrosion and radiation damage to the metal parts of a nuclear power plant allow for about a 60 year lifespan • Potential Options to decommission a plant: • Dismantle the plant piece by piece and store it in a high-level nuclear waste storage facility (none exist at this time) • Build a fence around the plant and guard it for the next 100 years until the radioactive levels have diminished • Enclose the entire plant in a concrete tomb and monitor it for several thousand years

  14. Does Nuclear Power really reduce our dependence on foreign oil and reduce global warming? • NO, only 1% of our electricity comes from oil. • The nuclear fuel cycle still produces carbon dioxide, just not as much

  15. New and Safer Reactors- Nah! • Advanced Light Water Reactors • High-Temperature-Gas Cooled Reactors • Breeder Nuclear Fission Reactors • These reactors may be more efficient and safer to operate but still do not answer the question of what to do with the radioactive waste or decommissioned reactors.

  16. Nuclear Fusion • Fusing one atom of deuterium and tritium to form helium at 100 million degrees and releasing huge amounts of energy. • Scientists still have not figured out a way to get higher outputs of energy than inputs. • Maybe it will be feasible but not for some time yet in the future

  17. Activities • 1) Years of Operation Worksheet • 2) Pollution Pathways due tomorrow

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