Nuclear Energy Essay

Nuclear energy is the world's largest source of emission-free energy. Nuclear power plants produce no controlled air pollutants, such as sulfur and particulates, or greenhouse gases. "Renewables" like solar, wind and biomass can help. But only nuclear power offers clean, environmentally friendly energy on a massive scale. The use of nuclear energy in place of other energy sources helps to keep the air clean, preserve the Earth's climate, avoid ground-level ozone formation and prevent acid rain. “Currently, there are 103 commercial nuclear power plants producing electricity in the United States, located at 64 sites in 31 states. They are, on average, 24 years old, and

During the process of nuclear energy, the nucleus splits and creates fission. Continuingly, heat is released from fission and, consequently, makes water into steam. Then the steam turns a turbine and generates electricity. Furthermore, this kind of energy is very effective and extremely reliable. Moreover, one uranium pellet (about the size of an eraser on the top of a pencil) can create as much energy as 2000 pounds of coal. However, nuclear energy does not rely on weather like windmills and solar panels. So even in bad weather conditions, it is still capable of producing

A nuclear power plant, in a sense, is much like a fossil-fueled power plant; water is turned to steam which drives a turbine that creates electricity. The contrast comes in the source of heat. With nuclear power, the heat to create the steam is produced when uranium atoms split, a process called fission. Under control, this is an ingenious way to create a power supply, however, the repercussions of a slight accident in a nuclear reactor are far worse than an accident in any other power plant.

The energy produced by the fission of uranium provides heat which turns water into steam which then turns the turbines, generating electricity. Nuclear reactors are becoming a more common source of electricity with 77% of France’s electricity coming from nuclear reactors. It’s both safer and easier to build thermal reactors. Most nuclear reactors are now thermal reactors. A nuclear reactor’s main components are the fuel rods; the control rods; the moderator and the coolant. These components are all found in the reactor’s core. Enriched fuel is placed in airtight rods, these are called the fuel rods. The moderator is the material that is found around the fuel and control rods. The coolant absorbs excess heat produced by the fission process in the reactor. Nuclear reactors are generally enclosed in a thick, airtight concrete and steel vessel. This protects those outside from the large quantities of gamma radiation given off.

This essay will argue that nuclear power will not be a sustainable energy source of 21st century for three main reasons. These include high cost of generating nuclear power, health effects of radiation and long-term impact of radioactive waste on the environment as well as present its disadvantages and compare it to renewable energy sources of solar power and wind power.

When clean and renewable sources of energy are discussed, the focus is usually centered around energy productions like solar and wind. But an important source of energy is often overlooked, nuclear energy. The viability of nuclear power plants has been a topic of debate since their inception, with many both for and against it. Many countries are broadly opposed to nuclear energy with poor public opinion resulting in the decommissioning of nuclear power plants in their country. With the potential dangers of nuclear energy and the historical disasters that have accompanied it, many are resistant to continuing its development. For my paper I will be addressing why even with historical catastrophes, forgoing nuclear energy would be a mistake.

Nuclear power has the potential to create vast amounts of energy from a comparatively miniscule fuel source. According to the Nuclear Energy Institute, “…as of November 2016, 30 countries worldwide are operating 450 nuclear reactors for electricity generation and 60 new nuclear plants are under construction” (Nuclear Energy Institute, 2016). Not only has nuclear power seen use across the world, but it has seen applications in the United States and right here in Florida. Currently, there are two facilities operated by Florida Power and Light (FPL) in the Sunshine State that produce over 3,000 megawatts of energy homes, public buildings, and businesses alike (Florida Power and Light, 2016a). However, these plants are hundreds of miles away from Volusia County (located near the major metropolitan areas of Port St. Lucie and Miami) and their benefits cannot be reaped by citizens in the county due to this distance. With successful nuclear plants already in operation within the state, why should Volusia County not try to acknowledge the possibility of such a project?

Nuclear power is a technology that has enormous benefits for humankind. As the demand for energy is only continuing to grow, it has become important to develop energy technology that has good yield and minimal negative side effects. After the harnessing of the atom for use in nuclear weapons, the knowledge of how to exploit the atom became incorporated in nuclear power plants (Corradini 1). These use uranium fuel in a process that releases tremendous amounts of energy to be captured, but also that creates minimal waste and other byproducts. Despite these, the benefits of nuclear energy outweigh any disadvantages, as seen by its high energy output, reliability, and minimal environmental impact when compared to energy sources such as fossil fuels.

Thus, wreaking havoc on environmental safely on a global scale, intoxication, poisoning, and destroying ecosystems. Secondly, nuclear energy is considered non-renewable energy, rather an alternative energy source, since Uranium is non-renewable. Even though nuclear power plants produce the least amount of Co2. Consequently, Uranium is the biggest concern on pollution. The mining and refining process of Uranium hasn’t been a clean process to a certain degree because transporting it represents a pollution hazard during its transport to and from nuclear power plants. Besides, being radioactive and dangerous. On the contrary, Nuclear power plants only pose a minute threat to the safety of the environment by its transportation of spent fuel not during the actual operation of the power plants as opposed to the more outdated fossil fuel power plants. For instance, fossil fuel power plants contribute tremendously to pollution during their operation. Not only-but also, the methods of transportation from mining and waste. The ecological hazard is even greater. Fossil fuel power plants produce pollution just by operating them. On the other hand, Nuclear energy does not create pollution during electricity production. Therefore, reinforcing one of the major advantage nuclear energy retains over traditional fossil fuel methods is that, “nuclear power production releases no pollutants into the air. By contrast, a typical coal-burning power plant

There is a great depth of curiosity in traversing the unknown, in embarking on journeys where the discoveries far outweigh your greatest expectations. In terms of nuclear power, the journey is still ensuing. Has progress been made? Yes. Have policies been formulated? Yes. Has a vast deal of information been researched? Yes.

A nuclear energy plant is a power station that produces electricity from nuclear reactions. Like other conventional thermal power stations, nuclear power plants heat up water into steam that is then used to drive power generators. The nuclear reactions involve extremely radioactive elements that contain a lot of energy. These are atoms with an unstable nucleus that continually emit small packets of energy called radiation in an attempt to attain a stable configuration (Timberlake, 2013). When such atoms are bombarded with a neutron, they easily split in a process called fission. Since Uranium is a large atom, the atomic force that holds it together is relatively weak, making it a suitable atom for fission in nuclear reactors.

In this paper I discuss the benefits of switching from energy production methods that use coal or natural gases to nuclear energy as our primary means of electricity. I touch on some of the many economic opportunities that these power plants provide us with. With this prompt I wanted to explore the idea of relying solely on nuclear energy which seems to be possible. Now with Nuclear energy I realize that many people have clouded judgement on the topic so I chose to discuss some of the health issues that are posed by nuclear power plants and some solutions being introduced to the public.

Nuclear plants, like plants that burn coal, oil and natural gas produce energy by boiling water into steam. This steam then turns turbines to produce electricity. The difference is nuclear plants do not burn anything. Instead they use uranium fuel, consisting of solid ceramic pellets. Nuclear reactions produce large amounts of energy whether it is fission or fusion. The

As our population increases, so will our demand for electricity. Air conditioners, computers, televisions, microwaves, and many other appliances have become necessities for Americans. All methods of producing electricity have drawbacks. As the earth becomes warmer, we must look for ways to decrease our use of fossil fuels. There are several ways to produce electricity without releasing air pollution. The most feasible method at this time is nuclear energy. Nuclear energy presents a safe, clean, and inexpensive alternative to other methods of producing electricity. Nuclear waste can either be reprocessed or disposed of safely, provided certain precautions are taken.