Essay on Energy Resource: Tar Sands and Nuclear Energy

“Nuclear power is energy that is created by splitting apart the nuclei of atoms” (Merriam Webster Dictionary). Atoms are made of smaller particles. The center of an atom is called the nucleus, which is made of protons and neutrons. Nuclear energy is contained within the nucleus and the strong nuclear force holds the protons and neutrons together.

On the morning of April 26th 1986 the world experienced the worst nuclear and engineering disaster ever: the nuclear disaster of Chernobyl. Reactor number 4 at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded due various reasons: the design of the reactor itself had a major flaw that would make it unstable when run at low power, and the employees responsible for running the reactor were inadequately trained. Leonid Toptunov, the

Nuclear energy is defined as energy released by reactions within atomic nuclei, as in nuclear fission or fusion (“Dictionary”). Nuclear fission is defined as a nuclear reaction in which a massive nucleus splits into smaller nuclei with the simultaneous release of energy. The definition of nuclear fission is as reaction in which two nuclei combine to form a nucleus with the release of energy (“Dictionary”). The process of nuclear fission and fusion happen inside of a nuclear reactor that is located in a nuclear power plant. Also needing to be defined, a nuclear reactor is a device in which nuclear fission initiates a controlled chain reaction, producing heat energy typically used for power generation, and neutrons and fission products (“Dictionary”). It is also important to know that there are a few different kinds of nuclear reactors. The different kind of reactors include: pressurized water reactors, boiling water reactors, gas-cooled reactors, and light water graphite reactors (Blau 117). Finally, a nuclear power plant is a facility for the production of electricity using

Oil sands are unconventional petroleum deposits that consist of loose sand and partially consolidated sand stone that contains natural mixtures of

Many critics argue that oil has had too big an impact to our society that we have become too dependant on it. The fact that oil is a non-renewable resource makes us more vulnerable for the inevitable change in the future. However, oil is arguably the best energy provider in our generation. It is cheap and easy to develop and transport. It is highly efficient (compared to alternative sources of energy). To simply discontinue the development of the oil sands would leave huge consequences. The global economy would suffer, as well as, possibly, the quality of lives of people. The unlimited "need" for oil in our society cannot be limited by government decisions. Rather than changing an

There are many power sources that can be utilized for our everyday lives; to heat our homes , run our toasters, and light our hallways. Most of that power either directly or indirectly comes form the sun(such as solar energy and fossil fuels). But one energy source that derived by the pure ingenuity of man is nuclear power. As with all power sources there are positive and negative externalities. For example: the burning of fossil fuel releases SOX and NOX into the air which can cause harm to the health of humans ie. negative externality. But what is the the environmental effect of using nuclear energy? What is the cost of extracting all this energy from so little?

Canada’s oil sands are among the largest oil reserves in the word. This is evident from the fact that Canada is ranked third for the largest oil reserve in the world, after Venezuela and Saudi Arabia (“Oil Sands,” n.d.). “Oil sand”, is a naturally occurring mixture of sand, clay, water and bitumen (Gosselin et al., 2010). It is a very dense and extremely viscous oil that must be treated before it can be used to produce usable fuels such as gasoline and diesel (Gosselin et al., 2010). In North America, high oil prices, growing demand, and diminishing oil reserves results in greater interest to mine local oil reserves. Increased production of oil generates significant economic benefits but, at the same time, the development of the oil sands

Bituminous sand, commonly referred to as simply tar sands or oil sands, is an unconventional type of petroleum deposit. It is generally a mixture of some portion of oil, sand, clay, water, and even asphalt. The mixture creates a black viscous substance in which can be refined an oil can be extracted from. The oil in this form is described as a thick semi-solid substance that almost honey-like in texture. There are a variety of ways in which the extraction of this resource can be conducted. However, all of these extraction techniques are more energy and water intensive than traditional methods of oil extraction and production.

Tar sands are a combination of clay, sand, water, and bitumen. As a type of unconventional petroleum deposit, tar sands are found in many places worldwide, the largest deposits are found in Alberta, Canada. The Alberta tar sand deposits contain more than 70.8% of the world 's reserves of natural bitumen which representing 40% of the world’s combined extra-heavy crude oil and crude bitumen reserves. It is the only bitumen deposits that are economically recoverable for conversion to synthetic crude oil at the price range of $25-$35 per barrel. Although substantial amount of the world 's oil is in the form of tar sands, it is not all recoverable. Study shows that the world’s total natural

The Chernobyl accident was a disastrous nuclear event that happened on 26th April 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine. The Chernobyl disaster is classified as a level 7 event according to the International Nuclear Event Scale (only two events have been classified this high in the past) and has caused damages that consist of the cost of 500,000 workers and 18 billion rubles, 31 deaths according to the Soviet casualty count (this is still being disputed) and between 4000-27000 affected future deaths due to radiation exposure [G1].

Nuclear energy is a source that supplies electricity the way it does this is according to NNR or the National Nuclear Regulator is that the energy is released during nuclear fission or fusion. The releasing of these energies is taken in a facility called nuclear power plants. In a recent World Statistics taken by the NES (Nuclear Energy Summit) nuclear power plants provided 10.9 percent of the world 's electricity production in 2012. Also in 2014, 13 countries relied on nuclear energy to supply at least one-quarter of their total electricity. Countries including France that use up to 76.9% and Sweden using 41.5%.

Atoms are the basic building block for almost everything in the universe. They consist of a nucleus, made up of protons and neutrons, and an electron cloud surrounding it. When the bonds holding the nucleus together are broken through nuclear fission, tremendous energy is unleashed; this is nuclear energy. During nuclear fission, a neutron collides with a uranium atom and splits, discharging huge amounts of energy in the form of radiation and heat. Additional neutrons are also released when a uranium atom splits and they go on to hit even more uranium atoms; this starts a nuclear chain reaction. Nuclear chain reactions are measured in a nuclear power plant to control the amount of heat produced. Most power plants use a special type of uranium, called U-235, for nuclear fission because its atoms are easily split apart. While normal uranium is about a

Mark Z. Jacobson once said “Every dollar spent on nuclear is one less dollar spent on clean renewable energy and one more dollar spent on making the world a comparatively dirtier and a more dangerous place, because nuclear power and nuclear weapons go hand in hand.” Nuclear energy is caused when power plants split uranium atoms inside a reactor in a process called fission. At a nuclear energy facility, the heat from fission is used to produce steam, which spins a turbine to generate electricity.

Nuclear Energy is the energy released during nuclear fission or fusion. Nuclear fusion and fission is the joining and splitting of the nucleus of an atom, it was discovered by physicist Erico Fermi in 1934 when he bombarded uranium with neutrons. Later, in 1942 a Russian named Ricardo Husada created the first nuclear chain reaction. In 1954 the first nuclear reactor was made just a few years later in 1956 the first large scale power plant was created in England. Today Nuclear power is fourteen percent of the worlds power, although it’s seen as being better than coal power it has shown to be far more dangerous than coal. It decreases the amount of uranium available, can be used as a devastating weapon, and has waste that can last for millions of years.

Nuclear energy is an alternative source of energy that holds great amounts of energy and is one of the future sources of energy for this world. “Nuclear energy is energy in the nucleus (core) of an atom. There is enormous energy in the bonds that hold the nucleus together. Energy is released when those bonds are broken” (Uranium). Unlike a chemical reaction with fossil fuels, nuclear reactions create an even greater amount of energy than fossil fuels. “Nuclear energy can be used to make electricity, but first it must be released it can be released from atoms in two ways: nuclear fusion and nuclear fission” (Uranium). Nuclear energy already provides 1/5 of all the energy in the U.S.,