2. A nuclear power plant is a thermal power
station in which the heat source is a nuclear
reactor. As in a conventional thermal power
station the heat is used to generate steam
which drives a steam turbine connected to a
generator which produces electricity. As of
February 2, 2012, there were 439 nuclear
power plants in operation.
3. Nuclear reactors work in a similar way to
other power plants, but instead of using coal
or gas to generate heat, they use nuclear
fission reactions. In most cases, heat from
the nuclear reactions convert water into
steam, which drives turbines that produce
electricity.
4.
5. Radioactive wastes are wastes that contain
radioactive material. Radioactive wastes are
usually by-products of nuclear power
generation and other applications of nuclear
fission or nuclear technology, such as
research and medicine. Radioactive waste is
hazardous to most forms of life and the
environment, and is regulated by government
agencies in order to protect human health
and the environment.
6. Nuclear Plant is an efficient source of power.
The energy released from the fission of an atom
of uranium is 10 million times the energy
produced from the combustion of a carbon atom
in coal. As fission uses less ore than that used by
coal plants, the environmental costs associated
with its mining and transport, such as fuel for
transportation and pollution from the transport
trucks, are also reduced. There is no everyday
pollution from nuclear power plants, and the
nuclear generation of energy does not lead to
global warming. In addition, this method of
energy production does not deplete the supply of
fossil fuel.
7. An accident in a nuclear fission plant can release
radioactive elements that are toxic to life, both at
the time of the accident and for many years after.
The 1986 explosion at Chernobyl killed 31 people,
and another 15,000 may die within the next 50 years
due to the radioactive fallout. The waste from
nuclear plants is radioactive and needs to be
carefully transported and stored in a long-term
facility, away from life. After 10 years, the waste
products are 1,000 times less radioactive, and after
500 years, they are less radioactive than the original
uranium ore. Each nuclear power plant in the United
States generates about 10 cubic feet of waste
annually, which is sent to Europe for reprocessing.
8. World biggest
nuclear power
plant situated in
towns of
Kashiwazaki and
Kariwa in Niigata
Prefecture, Japan
on the coast of the
Sea of Japan.