Nuclear Energy Overview and Impacts

Nuclear Energy: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

• Nuclear energy is the largest source of clean power in the US
• Generates nearly 800 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually
• This is more than half of the nation's emission-free electricity
• Equivalent to removing 100 million cars from the road (reducing carbon emissions by 470 million metric tons annually)

Nuclear Fission

• Fission is the splitting of an unstable atomic nucleus (like uranium-235)
• This process releases a tremendous amount of energy
• A neutron is fired at a uranium-235 atom
• This causes the atom to split into smaller atoms (krypton-92 and barium-141) and release more neutrons
• These neutrons can then cause more atoms to split, creating a chain reaction

U.S. Nuclear Power Plants

• A map shows the locations of active, decommissioned, and potential future nuclear power plants in the U.S.

The Good

• Nuclear power is a relatively cheap way to generate large amounts of energy from uranium
• Price fluctuations of Uranium are limited
• Technological advancements make it more efficient
• The energy released is ten million times greater than when burning fossil fuels
• One power plant produces thousands of megawatt hours of energy
• Very little fuel is needed
• Plants operate non-stop once working

Nuclear Fusion

• Nuclear fusion combines light atomic nuclei to form heavier ones, releasing massive amounts of energy
• Considered the holy grail of energy harnessing technology

The Bad

• Nuclear power plants require substantial amounts of water for cooling
• US consumed billions of gallons of water for nuclear power production in 2015
• This water usage is higher than coal processing
• Climate change is a concern regarding water usage

Non-Renewables

• Uranium is a non-renewable resource
• Experts estimate 200 years' worth of uranium is available at the current rate of mining
• Switching to nuclear energy as a primary alternative would deplete uranium faster

The Ugly

• Nuclear meltdowns are accidents caused by severe heating and lack of sufficient cooling at the reactor core
• These meltdowns occur in different stages, releasing potentially high radiation
• There has been only one almost complete nuclear meltdown in the history of nuclear energy: Chernobyl

Other Nuclear Incidents

• Windscale Fire
• Three Mile Island
• Tokaimura
• SL1 Island
• Fukushima
• Research these incidents for causes, affected populations, and similarities/differences

Technology to Fight against Meltdowns

• More frequent maintenance
• Backup backup generators
• More monitoring on seismic activity
• Coast plants built with anti-flooding/anti-electric loss systems
• Move more plants inland
• Switching coolants

Overall

• Don't panic
• This is not an exhaustive list. Research individually assigned topics.