What’s a Nuclear Reactor ?
A nuclear reactor is a device that is mainly used in nuclear power
plants to control the nuclear chain reaction of radioactive elements.
The prime application of nuclear reactors lies in the production of
electricity. In the current scenario, approximately 10% of the world’s
electricity is obtained from nuclear power plants.
On what principal does a Nuclear Reactor
work ?
A nuclear reactor is driven by the splitting of atoms, a process called
fission, where a particle (a ‘neutron’) is fired at an atom, which then
fissions into two smaller atoms and some additional neutrons. Some
of the neutrons that are released then hit other atoms, causing them
to fission too and release more neutrons. This is called a chain
reaction. The fissioning of atoms in the chain reaction releases a
large amount of energy, this energy harvested and used.
What are the advantages of a Nuclear
Reactor ?
Nuclear reactors are advantageous as they do not contribute to
global warming.
The fuel cost of nuclear reactors is quite low because a small
amount of nuclear fuel is capable of generating a large amount of
electrical energy.
A nuclear reactor doesn’t need a lot of fuel, it requires low quantity
fuel requirement of the nuclear reactors reduces the mining and
transportation charges.
The long lifespan of a nuclear reactor serves to be yet another
advantage of nuclear reactors.
The energy generation process used by nuclear reactors does not
lead to the emission of toxic gases, therefore it doesn’t lead to green
house effect.
Nuclear fission :
nuclear fission, subdivision of a heavy atomic nucleus, such as that
of uranium or plutonium, into two fragments of roughly equal mass.
The process is accompanied by the release of a large amount
of energy.
In nuclear fission the nucleus of an atom breaks up into two lighter
nuclei. The process may take place spontaneously in some cases or
may be induced by the excitation of the nucleus with a variety of
particles (e.g., neutrons, protons, deuterons, or alpha particles). In
the fission process, a large quantity of energy is released, radioactive
products are formed, and several neutrons are emitted. These
neutrons can induce fission in a nearby nucleus of fissionable
material and release more neutrons that can repeat the sequence,
causing a chain reaction in which a large number of nuclei undergo
fission and an enormous amount of energy is released.
If controlled in a nuclear reactor, such a chain reaction can
provide power for society’s benefit. If uncontrolled, as in the case of
the so-called atomic bomb, it can lead to an explosion of massive
destructive force.
The discovery of nuclear fission has opened a new era—the “Atomic
Age.”
The working of a Nuclear Reactor:
In nuclear fission, atoms are split apart, which releases energy. All
nuclear power plants use nuclear fission, and most nuclear power
plants use uranium atoms.
During nuclear fission, a neutron collides with a uranium atom and
splits it, releasing a large amount of energy in the form of heat and
radiation.
The average energy of neutron produced in fission of uranium 235 is
2MeV. These neutrons unless slowed down will escape from the
reactor without interacting with the uranium nuclei, unless a very
large amount of fissionable material is used for sustaining the chain
reaction, therefore, in reactors, light nuclei called moderators are
provided along with the fissionable material for slowing down fast
neutrons. Most common used moderators are water, heavy water
and graphite. Now these slowed down neutrons continue to collide
with other uranium atoms, and the process repeats itself over and
over again. This process is called a nuclear chain reaction.
The energy is released in the form of heat and this heat is used to
heat up water which evaporates and converts into steam which is at
high pressure. This steam under high pressure is sent into a turbine
chamber, where the steam under high pressure drives the turbines,
which turn the generators connected to them generating electrical
energy like a bicycle dynamo.
In order to ensure the nuclear reaction takes place at the right
speed, reactors have systems that accelerate, slow or shut down the
nuclear reaction, and the heat it produces. This is normally done with
control rods, which typically are made out of neutron-absorbing
materials such as cadmium.
Components of a Nuclear Reactor:
There are several components common to most types of reactor,
Fuel
Uranium is the basic fuel Usually pellets of uranium oxide (UO 2) are
arranged in tubes to form fuel rods. The rods are arranged into fuel
assemblies in the reactor core. A typical nuclear reactor requires
about 27 tonnes of uranium which is relatively very less compared to
fossil fuels.
Moderator
Material in the core which slows down the neutrons released from
fission so that they cause more fission. It is usually water, but may be
heavy water or graphite.
Control rods
These are made with neutron-absorbing material such as cadmium,
hafnium or boron, and are inserted or withdrawn from the core to
control the rate of reaction, or to halt it. In some reactors, special
control rods are used to enable the core to sustain a low level of
power efficiently.
Coolant
A fluid circulating through the core so as to transfer the heat from it.
In light water reactors the water moderator functions also as primary
coolant.
Pressure vessel or pressure tubes
Usually a robust steel vessel containing the reactor core and
moderator/coolant, but it may be a series of tubes holding the fuel
and conveying the coolant through the surrounding moderator.
Steam generators
These are heat exchangers used to convert water into steam from
heat produced in a nuclear reactor core.
Containment
The structure around the reactor and associated steam generators
which is designed to protect it from outside intrusion and to protect
those outside from the effects of radiation in case of any serious
malfunction inside. It is typically a metre-thick concrete and steel
structure.
Nuclear Reactor disasters
We all now know how beneficial nuclear reactors are to the society
but this great invention comes with a hefty cost, that is the
maintenance, if the maintenance is not done properly then there will
be a potential danger of an accident.
There have been a few nuclear meltdowns, out of these the most
severe one was the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster.
The Chernobyl disaster:
The disaster occurred on April 25–26, 1986, when technicians
at reactor Unit 4 attempted a poorly designed experiment. Workers
shut down the reactor’s power-regulating system and its emergency
safety systems, and they withdrew most of the control rods from its
core while allowing the reactor to continue running at 7 percent
power. These mistakes were compounded by others, and at
1:23 AM on April 26 the chain reaction in the core went out of
control. Several explosions triggered a large fireball and blew off the
heavy steel and concrete lid of the reactor. This and the ensuing fire
in the graphite reactor core released large amounts of radioactive
material into the atmosphere, where it was carried great distances
by air currents. A partial meltdown of the core also occurred.
On April 27 the 30,000 inhabitants of Pripyat began to be evacuated.
A cover-up was attempted, but on April 28 Swedish monitoring
stations reported abnormally high levels of wind-
transported radioactivity and pressed for an explanation. The Soviet
government admitted there had been an accident at Chernobyl, thus
setting off an international outcry over the dangers posed by
the radioactive emissions. By May 4 both the heat and the
radioactivity leaking from the reactor core were being
contained, albeit at great risk to workers. Radioactive debris was
buried at some 800 temporary sites, and later in the year the highly
radioactive reactor core was enclosed in a concrete-and-
steel sarcophagus.
This took a huge toll on human life as about 600,000people lost their
life due to the radiation fallout after the Chernobyl explosion.
This April 26, 1986 photo shows an aerial view of the Ukrainian Chernobyl nuclear plant, with damage
from an explosion and fire in reactor four that sent large amounts of radioactive material into the
atmosphere.
Misuse of fission process:
We have seen the great application of nuclear fission, but this
process can be used to create deadly weapons of mass destruction
that could potentially wipe out human civilization if a nuclear war
broke out between countries.
As we know nuclear fission chain reaction releases huge amount of
energy, when we control this chain reaction, we can obtain energy
but when this chain reaction is uncontrolled it will lead to massive
explosive energy released all in a fraction of second.
Consequences of a nuclear weapon:
Once a nuclear bomb is detonated,
At the epicentre of the nuclear explosion, thousands of people will
be vaporised in an instant and the surrounding area of few miles will
be completely destroyed by the intense heat and shockwave of the
explosion.
The people living in few hundreds of miles from epicentre will
receive enough radiation due the radiation fallout to kill them within
few months.
One such incident of misuse of fission process is the bombing of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II
atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, during World War II, American
bombing raid on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima (August 6, 1945)
and Nagasaki (August 9, 1945) that marked the first use of atomic weapons in
war. Tens of thousands were killed in the initial explosions and many more
would later succumb to radiation poisoning. On August 10, one day after the
bombing of Nagasaki, the Japanese government issued a statement agreeing
to accept the Allied surrender terms that had been dictated in the Potsdam
Declaration.
This bombing led to the death of about 175,000 people due to the explosion
and the radiation fallout.
This serves as a great remainder for humanity about the destructive power of
nuclear bombs.
Atomic bomb mushroom clouds over Hiroshima (left) and Nagasaki (right).
These aerial photographs show ground zero before and after the atomic bombing .
