What is Nuclear Energy?
Nuclear energy will be one of the alternative sources of energy in the future. Nuclear energy is the heat energy produced from the changes in an unstable nucleus. A large amount of nuclear energy is produced when a heavy nucleus splits in two light nuclei join to form a heavier nucleus.
Image via Wikipedia
What is Nuclear Energy?
Fossils fuels such as petroleum, natural gas and coal are the major sources of energy in the world. These natural fossil resources are depleting fast but the worldwide consumption of fossils fuels is high and keeps on increasing. When there is a shortage of fossil fuels is high and keeps on increasing. This will increase the production cost of electrical energy. The increase in the cost of electrical will increase the price of goods.
Renewable energy will be an important source of energy in the future. Electrical energy is generated in hydroelectric power plants. Solar energy is being used in some remote areas. Oil palm refinery plants also use biomass to generate electrical energy. Renewable energy generated from the wind or waves is not used in our country.
Nuclear energy will be one of the alternative sources of energy in the future. Nuclear energy is the heat energy produced from the changes in an unstable nucleus. A large amount of nuclear energy is produced when a heavy nucleus splits in two light nuclei join to form a heavier nucleus (nuclear fusion).
Image via Wikipedia
Nuclear Fission
Image via Wikipedia
Nuclear fission is a process where an unstable and heavy nucleus is bombarded by a neutron, causing it to split into two (or more) lighter nuclei together with the release of neutrons and energy. The two nuclei are called fission products.
The total mass after nuclear fission is slightly lower than the mass before fission. The loss in mass is converted into a large amount of nuclear energy and neutrons are released.
Image via Wikipedia
Nuclear fission can only occur in some types of heavy and unstable nuclei such as in the uranium -235 and plutonium -239.
When a slow-moving neutron bombards a uranium -235 nucleus, the uranium -235 will split into two lighter nuclei, which is the barium -141 nucleus and the krypton -92 nucleus. Two or three neutrons, together with nuclear energy are also produced.
Image via Wikipedia
The neutrons which are produced will bombard more uranium -235 nuclei. This will produce more neutrons and more nuclear energy is released. The process of bombardment will repeat and the release of neutrons is repeated, resulting in a chain reaction.
An uncontrolled chain reaction happens during the explosion of an atomic bomb. The Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bomb explosions during world War II released a large amount of nuclear energy and radioactive radiation which caused a great loss of human lives and property.
Image via Wikipedia
In a nuclear reactor, the number of chain reactions is controlled to determine the amount of nuclear energy that will be produced. The boron rods inside a nuclear reactor absorb neutrons. This will control the number of neutrons that bombard the uranium -235 nuclei.
The speeds of neutrons are slowed down by the graphite core. The fission of uranium -235 is more likely to occur with slow neutrons than with fast neutrons.
Image via Wikipedia
Nuclear Fusion
Nuclear fusion is a process where two light nuclei to form a heavier, more stable nucleus together with the release of a large amount of nuclear energy. Enriched uranium fuel that has a higher proportion of uranium -235 is used in the production of nuclear energy.
The heat and light energy from the Sun is due to the fusion of hydrogen atoms at a very high temperature and pressure.
Image via Wikipedia
In nuclear fusion, hydrogen -2 (deuterium) and hydrogen -3 (tritium) are combined at a very high temperature and pressure to produce a heavier helium nucleus. A neutron and a large amount of nuclear energy are produced.
However, the atomic mass loss in nuclear fusion is slightly more than that of nuclear fission. Hence nuclear fusion will produce more nuclear energy than nuclear fission.
Normally hydrogen -2 and hydrogen -3 isotopes are used in nuclear fusion.
Nuclear fusion is used to make hydrogen bombs. Hydrogen bombs release more nuclear energy than atomic bombs.
Image via Wikipedia
The Advantages and Disadvantages of Nuclear Fusion
Image via Wikipedia
The advantages of nuclear fusion are: a) it produces more nuclear energy than nuclear fission. b) It produces less radioactive radiation than nuclear fission.
The disadvantages of nuclear fusion are: a) the rate of nuclear fusion cannot be controlled whereas the rate of nuclear fission can be controlled. b) Nuclear fusion occurs at a very high temperature and pressure that is difficult to achieve.
Liked it
29 Responses to “What is Nuclear Energy?”
On June 10, 2009 at 10:57 am
The article is not only good and academic but also very nice to expose the difference between nuclear fission and fusion, the process of which are the subject of the 21st century. Energy is for improvement or for destruction; the choice lies with the intellectuals of the present generation. Thanks a lot for sharing.
On June 10, 2009 at 11:23 am
great read.
On June 10, 2009 at 11:23 am
Your presentation is excellent with interest directed for everyone’s education.Well done!
On June 10, 2009 at 11:26 am
May not be the most fun article for me to read but it was very informative and very well written ~ kudos
On June 10, 2009 at 11:32 am
Your presentation is EXCELLENT!Fly you a “like it”.
On June 10, 2009 at 11:59 am
Really great article. as well as informative. great factual information in this fine presentaion! always,Gary La Buda
On June 10, 2009 at 12:42 pm
I wondered where nuclear energy came from. This is an excellent and beautifully presented article. Well done.
Christine
On June 10, 2009 at 1:14 pm
Enjoyed
, never really thought of where my energy came from, was nice to read and learn something more 
On June 10, 2009 at 1:27 pm
Well researched, informative, educational and well written as always.
On June 10, 2009 at 2:22 pm
Magnificent! You are on our side, aren’t you?
On June 10, 2009 at 2:34 pm
Great, informative article Mr Ghaz.
On June 10, 2009 at 3:01 pm
Learned a lot from this well done article Mr Ghaz.
On June 10, 2009 at 5:59 pm
Mr.Ghanz, I don’t want nuclear energy. I know it doesn’t matter what I want. We have some now and I feel sure we will havemore and more of it. I am afraid of all the waste and where it will be stored. there is no safe place to store it and sooner or later it will be loose and upon us.
On June 10, 2009 at 7:34 pm
This is very informative Mr. Ghaz. Very well-presented.
On June 10, 2009 at 8:04 pm
Great article! Very informative, thanks for sharing.
On June 10, 2009 at 10:16 pm
Very Informative!!!!!!
On June 11, 2009 at 12:34 am
I was a Nuclear Medicine nurse and injected patients daily with isotopes. Treated with respect it is a powerful treatment.
Interesting article.
On June 11, 2009 at 2:40 am
You do great science related articles.
On June 11, 2009 at 10:45 am
Excellent article, mrghaz.
On June 11, 2009 at 11:16 am
nice topic and illustrations..this is really informative..we are also thought these kinds of things in school but i barely listen..:)
On June 11, 2009 at 11:26 am
Another fantastic and interesting presentation. I am always excited to read your work.
On June 11, 2009 at 4:21 pm
This article, while explaining a bit on an interesting topic, did only that. That is to say, it only explained a bit. Take out all the irrelevant pictures, and state the relevant information once and only once, and this wouldn’t be long enough to publish. Please work on adding more actual information to your writing, remember, quality not quantity.
On June 12, 2009 at 9:13 am
My friend this is an excellent article worth reading again and again. it is so educational.
On June 12, 2009 at 11:57 pm
Very well presented,
This is a great article.
Very informative!
On June 13, 2009 at 1:44 am
very interesting, considerable work went into it.
On June 13, 2009 at 3:41 am
DOUBLE YOUR EARNINGS BY REPOSTING YOUR TRIONDS ARTICLES TO BUKISA!!!
My triond friends I am happy to tell you that you can now repost your trionds article to bukisa. Bukisa is a very good site. They allow us to repost our article to their site as long as we are the original author of the article and it must be s minimum of 250 words.
To join bukisa visit the link below:
http://www.bukisa.com/join/4941
On June 13, 2009 at 10:10 am
You covered this complex subject very well. thank you for the breakdown on what nuclear energy is!
On June 15, 2009 at 10:24 pm
Fashion Handbag Trends:Replica Louis Vuitton
Recommend Replica Louis Vuitton- LV is the king of luxury Louis Vuitton,which first made by the skillful master,who specially worked for the Royal Palace in 19th century.His luggage stand for the most delicacy trip appliance sign,owing to his consummate skill,it move from Paris to Europe.
Louis Vuitton handbag Collection- The Louis Vuitton handbag is a sign,taste and fashion,also the symbol of status in the society and acceptability.
If you cost a lot of money to buy a Louis Vuitton handbag- that is not a save money way,Let us share our secret,there is a way make you buy a Louis Vuitton handbag,at the meanwhile,you will save your money.
Secret in AsiaHandbag- Nobody will find out you come with the wholesale Replica Louis Vuitton from AsiaHandbag,even they appreciate your Replica Louis Vuitton.You will wondrously notice that that’s too much replica LV Louis Vuitton from AsiaHandbag.We are Professional Wholesale Retail Replica Handbag company,we can make them from designer genuine handbags thoroughly.
from: http://www.asiahandbag.com
On June 19, 2009 at 11:15 pm
That’s all well and good;however, we do need an alternative fuel source. Many science fiction writers had some interesting ideas. The one I liked the most was in the movie “Back to the Future” (not sure if it was the very first one or not) where the flux capacitor ran on trash conversion. Maybe the marijuana plants could be used for an alternative fuel source or coffee beans or any other drug that “wires humans for sound,” The way some people bounce off the walls, why couldn’t that be placed in the fuel tank? I don’t what the answer is, but I believe humans will make a lot of errors and not only in judgment before they find the answer.
Post Comment