Nuclear energy is released through the splitting or fusing of atomic nuclei. A nuclear reactor controls nuclear fission to produce heat at a steady rate, unlike a nuclear bomb. Nuclear reactors have key components like nuclear fuel, neutron moderators, coolants, and control rods to regulate the reaction. Uranium-235 is commonly used as nuclear fuel. When neutrons split uranium nuclei, fission fragments and heat are produced. Coolants circulate to absorb and transfer this heat. Control rods are used to slow the reaction rate as needed. Nuclear power can generate electricity and provide heat for various applications. India operates several nuclear power plants regulated by its Nuclear Power Corporation to develop nuclear technology and produce electricity.

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Nuclear Energy, energy released during the splitting or fusing of
atomic nuclei. The energy of any system, whether physical, chemical,
or nuclear, is manifested by the system’s ability to do work or to
release heat or radiation. The total energy in a system is always
conserved, but it can be transferred to another system or changed in
form

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A nuclear reactor is a device in which nuclear chain reactions are initiated,
controlled, and sustained at a steady rate (as opposed to a nuclear bomb, in
which the chain reaction occurs in a fraction of a second and is completely
uncontrolled). Currently all commercial nuclear reactors are based on
nuclear fission, and are considered by some to be a safe and pollution-free
method of generating electricity.

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The key components common to most types of nuclear power plants
are:
Nuclear fuel
Neutron moderator
Coolant
Control rods
Pressure vessel
Emergency Core Cooling Systems (ECCS)
Reactor Protective System (RPS)
Steam generators (not in BWRs)
Containment building
Boiler feedwater pump
Turbine
Electrical generator
Condenser

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Fuel:- The nuclear reactors uses Uranium-235 as its main fuel . The neutrons of
Uranium-235 move in equilibrium .
When these neutrons strike a uranium-235 nucleus (in blue in figure below) in the Fuel,
sometimes the nucleus will split, or fission, into 2 unequally sized nuclei called fission
fragments (in green in figure below). The fission products are large positively-charged
particles of elements like Strontium or Iodine. These fission products slow down quickly in
the fuel . They are the major contributor to heat production in the fuel (~80%). This heat
gets transmitted to the coolant outside the fuel.
http://www.nucleartourist.com/basics/basic.htm

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Control Rods :- The control rods are very important in the working of the nuclear reactor. They
usually made up of cadmium. The main function of the control rods is to slow down the rate of
reaction to a controllable limit . Other wise it would turn to be chain reaction blows up like a nuclear
bomb.
Raising and lowering the control rods allow operators to control the rate of the nuclear
reaction. When an operator wants the uranium core to produce more heat, the rods are raised out
of the uranium bundle. To create less heat, the rods are lowered into the uranium bundle.
Coolant
The purpose of the nuclear fission process is to produce heat. The fission fragments that are
produced by the fission then slow down in the fuel losing most of their energy. The energy is
converted to heat in the fuel. A Coolant is used to remove the heat and maintain the temperature
of the fuel within acceptable limits. Sometimes the coolant is used to cool the moderator which, in
turn, can be used to cool the fuel. Sometimes the coolant cools the fuel by passing around the
rods containing the fuel. Sometimes the moderator and the coolant are the same material (e.g.
water).

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Courtesy :-College of Engineering
University of Wisconsin - Madison

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•Nuclear power:
•Heat for electricity generation
•Heat for domestic and industrial heating
•Hydrogen production
•Desalination
•Nuclear propulsion:
•Nuclear marine propulsion
•Proposed nuclear thermal rockets
•Proposed nuclear pulse propulsion rockets
•Transmutation of elements:
•Production of plutonium, often for use in nuclear weapons
•Creating various radioactive isotopes, such as americium for use in smoke detectors, and
cobalt-60, molybdenum-99 and others, used for imaging and medical treatment
•Research applications including:
•Providing a source of neutron and positron radiation (e.g. Neutron activation analysis and
Potassium-argon dating)
•Development of nuclear technology

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In India Nuclear Reactors are governed by a government body Nuclear
Power Corporation Power of India .Its mission is to develop Nuclear
Power Technology and to produce Nuclear Power, as a safe,
environmentally benign and an economically viable source of electrical
energy to meet the increasing electricity needs of the country
Some of the Major Nuclear Power Plants in India are:-
1. Tarapur, Maharashtra
2. Rawatbhata, Rajasthan
3. Kakrapar, Gujarat

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