Delivered lectures on Radioactive Minerals in University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, now called UPES, at Dehradun, India over a week in February. This is Part-1 of the same.

1. UPES Lectures
Part-1

2. Nuclear Power
Global Scenario, Indian Perspective

3. Fukushima Shakes the Nuclear World
• Earthquake of magnitude 9.0 struck Fukushima at 2.46 pm on Friday 11 March 2011
• The earthquake was centred 130 km offshore causing sea floor to move 10-20m
horizontally over 650 km length
• The resultant tsunami inundated 560 km2 and death toll was about 19,000
• Failure in power supply disabled delivery of cooling water to the plant causing 3 reactors
to get damaged. There was radioactive leakage.
• There was no death or sickness due to radiation

4. Uranium Prices Crashed!
Note: The price is $28.65/lb (as on 7thJan,2019)
• Japan (nuclear power is 30% of total) closed 11 out of 54 reactors and plans to close more
• Germany decided to phase out nuclear power completely
• Italy, Malaysia, Switzerland have cancelled planned reactors
• France (nuclear power is 75% of total) conducted safety audits of all its power plants
Post Tsunami
Sust. Level

5. India Needs More Electricity
12,830
5,030
9,910
4,280
2,500
920
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
12000
14000
US UK AUS CHINA BRAZIL INDIA
kWh/Capita (2016)@
@ International Energy Agency)
* Niti Ayog
** Min of Mines
• Low per-capita power consumption
• Projected GDP growth rate is +8%
over 15y **
• During 1990-2013, 170mill were
pulled above poverty line*
• Middle class will constitute +40% of
population*
• India’s population will stabilize at
1.5bill in 2050*

6. Fuel MW %
(Coal 1,97,172 57.9
Gas 24,897 7.3
Oil 838 0.3)
Thermal 2,22,907 65.5
Hydro 45,293 13.3
Nuclear 6,780 2
RES* (MNRE) 65,547 19.2
Relevance of Nuclear Power
• Power generated from 1kg of uranium is equivalent to 14,000kg of coal
producing 45000 kWh of electricity
• Less mining, less transport less environmental foot print
• 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Paris, 2015: India “To
reduce the emissions intensity of its GDP by 33 to 35 % by 2030 from 2005
level” meaning 40% of power generation by non-fossil sources

7. Radioactivity
• Atomic Number = Number of protons in an atom
• Mass Number = Number of Protons+ Number of Neutrons
Isotope is 1of 2 or more species of atom having same atomic number ( hence
constituting the same element) but differing in mass number meaning same no of
protons but different no of neutrons)
At higher atomic numbers, the atom has a much larger no of neutrons. These try to
stabilize by releasing protons (new atomic number of the product) and emitting
energy called radiation
Electron
Proton
Neutron
Nucleus

8. Uranium: The Story
• Uranium as an element was discovered by Martin
Klaporth in 1789 – It was used mostly as colouring
agent of glass & ceramics
• Radioactive properties of uranium discovered by
Henri Becquerel in 1896 – significance not
understood then
• Marie Sklodowska Curie discovered Radium,
Polonium and also developed technique for
separation of isotopes
• Radium was considered a miracle cure of cancer
and commanded $ 75,000/ ounce till 1930s
• She died due to overexposure to radioactivity in
1934 understood to have happened during
unprotected X-Rays in field hospitals
(She carried isotopes in pockets, stored them in desk
drawer and remarked about faint glow of radium in
dark!)(Nov 1867 – July 1934)

9. Uranium
Earliest known use of uranium is in
coloured glass of 79 AD Rome and
contains 1%uranium oxide.
Isotopes U234 U235 U238
Atomic
Number
92 92 92
Mass number 234 235 236
Neutrons 142 143 146
• Natural uranium:
• uranium-235 : 0.711% ,
• uranium-238 : 99.284% ,
• uranium-234 : traces
• When U235 is hit with a slow neutron, it
splits giving off energy and more
neutrons.
• These neutrons can be slowed by a
moderator and can cause further U235 to
split.
• Energy produced
• Heat energy: 85%
• Radiation energy: 15%
• The heat energy is used to heat
water and then on it is like a
thermal power plant. The radiation
energy is harnessed back to
continue the chain reaction.

10. Global Uranium Production*
Largest Uranium Producing Countries
Country 2007 2009 2011 2013 2015 2017
Kazakhstan 6637 14,020 19,451 22,451 23,800 23,391
Canada 9476 10,173 9145 9331 13,325 13,116
Australia 8611 7982 5983 6350 5654 5882
Niger 3153 3243 4351 4518 4116 3449
Namibia 2879 4626 3258 4323 2993 4224
Note: Total global production in 2017 was 59,531 t
Method tonnes U %
In situ leach (ISL) 29,492 50%
Underground & open pit (except Olympic
Dam)*
27,350 46%
By-product* 2689 4%
*2017, World Nuclear Association