How can nuclear power be used to create energy

This is called a chain reaction. The fissioning of atoms in the chain reaction also releases a large amount of energy as heat. The generated heat is removed from the reactor by a circulating fluid, typically water. This heat can then be used to generate steam, which drives turbines for electricity production. 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 silver and boron. Two examples of nuclear fissioning of uranium, the most commonly used fuel in nuclear reactors. BWRs heat water and produce steam directly inside the reactor vessel. Water is pumped up through the reactor core and heated by fission.

Pipes then feed the steam directly to a turbine to produce electricity. Nuclear reactors are the heart of a nuclear power plant. Nuclear Fission Creates Heat The main job of a reactor is to house and control nuclear fission —a process where atoms split and release energy. Fission and Fusion: What is the Difference? There are two types of light-water reactors operating in America. Pressurized water reactors.

For more than 60 years, nuclear energy has provided the world with reliable electricity. Today, more than reactors are operating in more than 30 countries. More nations are exploring the use of nuclear energy, particularly as electricity demand increases and concerns about climate change rise. International Atomic Energy Agency. World Association of Nuclear Operators. Radiation is energy in motion. There are many natural sources of radiation that we live with safely every day such as cosmic radiation from the sun.

It is not possible for a nuclear energy plant to explode like a bomb, these plants are designed to produce electricity safely and reliably. If you stood at the site boundary for a whole year, you would receive less than a quarter of the radiation from a chest x-ray.

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