The Nuclear Of Nuclear Power Essay

Firstly, the atomic incidents of Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania and Chernobyl in Russia are often mentioned as examples for nuclear plants being unsafe. In both cases failures of workers led to a meltdown in the reactors and increased radiation in the surrounding area (Henderson 12-17). And as the recent disaster in Japan shows, a nuclear crisis cannot only be caused by human mishaps, but also by unpredictable and untamable natural hazards. Consequently, nuclear crises cannot be predicted or prevented completely. Nuclear plants are, furthermore, considered uneconomical because in the eighties the construction costs of nuclear plants were underestimated and exceeded the estimation by $100 billion (Henderson 103). Therefore, the nuclear power opponents are arguing that nuclear power is burdening the American economy unnecessarily. According to the nuclear physicist Jeff Eerkens, antinuclear groups are also claiming that nuclear power is not necessary for the future since renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, hydro, and geothermal power will be providing sufficient energy for the United States, and are at the same time much cheaper than the costly nuclear power plants (Eerkens 20). Over all, opponents consider nuclear power to risky and inefficient to “deserve further support from U.S. taxpayers” (Henderson 104).

The United States should use nuclear energy to help supplement energy demand because it’s cost-effective, safer for the environment, and a more reliable source of energy than any of the other types of fuel. Some of the topics of interest are cost-effectiveness, recycling options, long term storage options, environmental protection technologies currently being used, and a breakdown of how nuclear energy out performs other sources of power year round.

For years, many scientists, environmentalists, and energy experts have been studying how human’s creation and use of energy has impacted our environment. These experts have discovered some troubling facts. Most of our country’s energy is created from burning fossil fuels that pollute our atmosphere, contribute to global warming, and thus threaten the future of our planet. But there’s a safe and effective solution to this problem: nuclear power. Nuclear power should be used more in the United States to create clean power that doesn’t pollute our environment, in order to help combat climate change.

In its attempts to harness the power of the atom, mankind has itself in the possession of weapons with unbelievable, destructive power. Nations now have the ability to destroy entire cities from hundreds of miles away, in only minutes. These weapons are nuclear weapons. Nuclear weapons cost the citizens of the United States billions of dollars in taxes each year, the testing and maintenance of these weapons pose serious health risks, and the actual need for these weapons is not and has not been around for years. For the above reasons, the United States should reduce its nuclear arsenal.

Thirty-one years ago today, on April 26th 1986, “a sudden surge of power during a reactor systems test destroyed Unit 4 of the nuclear power station at Chernobyl” {1}. Nuclear energy can be unstable, but there has been a growing comeback of enthusiasm in nuclear energy as a renewable energy source. Before I continue talking about nuclear energy, let me provide you some background on it. It all started in Germany in 1895 when he started to experiment with cathode rays

The world as we know today is dependent on energy. The options we have currently enable us to produce energy economically but at a cost to the environment. As fossil fuel source will be diminishing over time, other alternatives will be needed. An alternative that is presently utilized is nuclear energy. Nuclear energy is currently the most efficacious energy source. Every time the word ‘nuclear’ is mentioned, the first thought that people have is the devastating effects of nuclear energy. Granting it does come with its drawbacks; this form of energy emits far less pollution than conventional power plants. Even though certain disadvantages of nuclear energy are devastating, the advantages contain even greater rewards.

Nuclear power plants around the world produce about 16% of the world’s electricity production. And, this electricity production has an important role in the advances in any industries, agriculture and level of living. Now there is a universally recognition for the importance of limiting greenhouse emissions, and scenarios and strategies are proposed so that we can reach sustainable future energy. However, nuclear energy is predicted to have a share in this future. The current generation of NPPs are not very competitive with the modern thermal power plants in when it comes to thermal efficiency the difference in thermal efficiencies between thermal and nuclear power plants can be 20 – 25%. So, new generation (Generation IV) NPPs with thermal efficiencies that is close to modern thermal power plants with a range of 45 – 50%, should be designed and constructed in the nearest future. So, in this paper an overview will be given in Generation IV NPP.

PROBLEM: With limited options, proper disposal of highly radioactive spent fuel rods from nuclear reactors poses a unique threat to the national security of the United States; especially when public utilities are incentivized to utilize less expensive and arguably more dangerous cooling ponds. Dry casks, although more expensive, provide increased safeguards, security, and inventory controls not found with cooling ponds, and helps mitigate and alleviate many of the concerns found in storing spent fuel.

The UK civil nuclear power industry initially started in 1946 followed by the establishment of one of the world’s first nuclear power plant in 1956 [23-24]. This commercial scale reactor was built in southwest Scotland and given a name “MAGNOX” due to the fuel cladding (magnesium non-oxidising alloy) used to contain the fuels. The MAGNOX reactor uses natural uranium metal fuel to generate thermal energy while using graphite bricks to moderate the fast moving neutrons within the core. Two types of graphite bricks are used in MAGNOX design; these are Pile Grade A (PGA) and Pile Grade B (PGB). The former is used as a neutron moderator due to its high density and lower neutron absorption, whereas the latter is mostly used as a reflector [23].

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.

In a world of ever increasing population there is a need to find a way to provide electricity for the world. There many different ways that electricity can be produced but some of the options are better suited for the Central Valley than others. The debate over Nuclear power has been growing for years and it is now time to create a more reliable power source for the Central Valley. Nuclear power should be considered to be a reliable source of power for the central valleys growing population.

There are different views concerning the use of nuclear energy around the world, there is also some varying attitudes when it comes to the development in nuclear energy. The nuclear energy proponents tout it as clean energy, since it does not emit the harmful gasses that are associated with fossil fuel. Moreover, the construction of nuclear power stations does not also emit much CO2 such since other sources of energy are used in powering the instruments used. The UAE has embarked on the construction of nuclear energy plant in a close construction with the International atomic agency. This decision was meant to substitute the already existing gas and oil that are being used by the large population percentage. The rate of electricity demand is growing by 9% and the statistics indicate that the country will require 40GWe capacity of electricity by 2020. UAE relies on the available electricity produced via the use of oil and gas to provide portable water, by desalination. By April 2008, the UAE had established a comprehensive policy for nuclear energy that was to be used for evaluation and potential development of a peaceful nuclear power. This policy has been built under consideration of the most exacting standards of transparency, safety and security; hence it makes the UAE a role model in the nuclear power development across the globe. The move to import coal as a substitute for the existing gas and oil was rejected since coal is not friendly to the environment and there are

The use of nuclear energy is a big topic for debate. Many countries have fully embraced it while others, such as the U. S., haven’t. Nuclear energy is feared for its danger and scorned because of its wastes. On the other hand, nuclear energy does have some pros like cheaper cost of energy and environmentally safe. Reactor breeders show great promise in nuclear waste, but are it enough to convince the nation?

Nuclear power has been around for decades and can be easily utilized to help meet America’s energy needs. With energy