ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to express my deepest appreciation to all those

who have provided me with the opportunity to perform this
project.

I would like to express my sincere thanks to Physics teacher

Ms. ____________, whose valuable guidance has helped me
to complete the project. Her suggestions and instructions have
served as a major contributor towards the successful outcome
of this project.
I take the opportunity to thank our head of the institution, Mrs.
___________, who was always supportive and helpful in
fulfilling all of our academic requirements.
I would like to thank my parents for giving encouragement,
enthusiasm and invaluable assistance to me.
Last but not the least; I would like to thank all my classmates
who have supported me in various aspects.
 INDEX
Sl. No. CONTENTS Page
Nos.
1 EVOLUTION OF NUCLEAR ENERY 1

2 IMPORTANCE OF NUCLEAR 2
POWER
3 NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS IN 3
INDIA

4 MAIN COMPONENTS OF A 4
NUCLEAR REACTOR
5 COMPONENTS OF A NUCLEAR 6
REACTOR

6 WORKING OF A NUCLEAR 12
REACTOR
7 PRINCIPLE OF REACTOR 13
CONTROLLER
8 TYPES OF REACTOR 14

9 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE 15

10 ADVANTAGE 16

11 DISADVANTAGE 17

12 NUCLEAR ACCIDENTS 18
13 FUTURE OF NUCLEAR POWER & 25
CONCLUSION
14 BIBLIOGRAPHY 26
 EVOLUTION OF
NUCLEAR ENERGY
The science of atomic radiation, atomic change and nuclear
fission was developed from 1895 to 1945, much of it in the last
six of those years. Over 1939-45, most development was
focused on the atomic bomb. From 1945 attention was given to
harnessing this energy in a controlled fashion for naval
propulsion and for making electricity. Since 1956, the prime
focus has been on the technological evolution of reliable
nuclear power plants.

In 1942, physicist Enrico Fermi led a team that achieved the

first nuclear chain reaction, under a stadium at the University of
Chicago. The first nuclear power plant was opened in Obninsk,
Russia in 1954 . In the 1960s, nuclear power plants were built
in many countries, including the United States, France, and
Japan.
In the 1970s, the oil crisis led to a renewed interest in nuclear
power as an alternative to fossil fuels. However, the Three Mile
Island accident in 1979 and the Chernobyl disaster in 1986 led
to increased public concern about the safety of nuclear power.

Since then, there has been a shift towards developing safer

and more efficient nuclear reactors. In recent years, there has
been growing interest in small modular reactors (SMRs) that
can be built in factories and transported to their final location.
Overall, nuclear energy has undergone significant changes
over time, from its early development in the 1940s to the
present day, with a focus on safety and efficiency.

1
 IMPORTANCE OF
NUCLEAR ENERGY
Conventional thermal power stations use oil or coal as the
source of energy. The reserves of these fuels are becoming
depleted in many countries and thus there is a tendency to
seek alternative sources of energy. In a nuclear power station
instead of a furnace there is a nuclear reactor, in which heat is
generated by splitting atoms of radioactive material under
suitable conditions. For economical use in a power system a
nuclear power station has to be large and where large units are
justifiable.
Nuclear power plants provide about 10 percent of the world’s
electricity. Some countries depend more on nuclear power for
electricity than others. In France, for instance about 75 percent
of the electricity is generated from nuclear power, according to
the International Atomic Energy Agency.
In the United States, nuclear power supplies about 15 percent
of the electricity overall, but some states get more power than
others. There are more than 400 nuclear power plants around
the world, with more than 100 in the United states.

2
Conventional thermal
power stations use oil
or coal as the
source as the source of
energy. The reserves of
these fuels are
becoming depleted in
many countries and thus
there is a
tendency to seek alternative
sources of energy. In a
nuclear
power station instead of a
furnace there is a nuclear
reactor, in
3
which heat is generated by
splitting atoms of
radioactive
material under suitable
conditions. For
economical use in a
power system a nuclear
power station generally has
to be large
and where large units are
justifiable.
Conventional thermal
power stations use oil
or coal as the

4
source as the source of
energy. The reserves of
these fuels are
becoming depleted in
many countries and thus
there is a
tendency to seek alternative
sources of energy. In a
nuclear
power station instead of a
furnace there is a nuclear
reactor, in
which heat is generated by
splitting atoms of
radioactive
5
material under suitable
conditions. For
economical use in a
power system a nuclear
power station generally has
to be large
and where large units are
justifiably
NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS IN
INDIA
In India, it was Rd. H.J. Bhabha who put India on the road to
nuclear research. Nuclear energy is the fifth-largest source of
electricity in India, accounting for about 3% of the total electricity
generation in the country. India has over 22 nuclear reactors in 7
States across the country which produces 6780 MW of nuclear
power. The government plans to commission 20 more nuclear
power plants by 2031 and will add nearly 15,000 MW to power
generating capacity. Tarapur is the first nuclear power plant of
India. It was commissioned in October 1969. Kudankulam Nuclear
Power Plant –KKNPP, is the largest nuclear power station in India,
situated in Kudankulam in the Tirunelveli District of the southern
Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

6
 MAIN PARTS OF A
NUCLEAR REACTOR

7
The main parts of a nuclear power station are:
Nuclear Reactor

Heat Exchanger

Steam Turbine

8
 Condenser

Steam Generator

9
 COMPONENTS OF A
NUCLEAR REACTOR
1. Nuclear fuel
2. Reactor core
3. Moderator
4. Control rods
5. Reflector
6. Reactor vessel
7. Biological shielding
8. Coolant

10
Nuclear fuel:
Fuel of a reactor should be fissionable material which can be
defined as an element or isotope whose nuclei can be caused
to undergo nuclear fission nuclear bombardment and to
produce a fission chain reaction
The fuels used are: U238, U235, U234 and UO2.
Fertile materials, those which can be transformed into fissile
material, cannot sustain chain reactions. When a fertile
converted to fissile material. U238 and Th232 are examples of
fertile materials used for reactor purposes.
Nuclear Fuel Assembly is a structured group of fuel rods. A fuel
rod is a long slender, metal tubes containing pellets of
fissionable material.
A typical fuel assembly contains about 450 kg of uranium in the
form of UO2

11
Reactor core:
A nuclear reactor core is the portion of a nuclear reactor
containing components where the nuclear reaction takes place
and the heat is generated.
The core also contains structural components, the means to
both moderate the neutron and control the reaction, and the
means to transfer the heat from the fuel to where it is required,
outside the core.
Reactor cores are of two types:
 Water-moderated reactor - is a nuclear reactor using light
water as a moderator.
 Graphite-moderated reactor - is a nuclear reactor using
graphite as a moderator.

Water-moderated reactor Graphite-moderated reactor

12
Moderator:
A nuclear moderator is a material placed in a nuclear reactor
core to slow down the fast neutrons produced by splitting
atoms in fissile compounds like Uranium-235, making them
more effective in the fission chain reaction. This slowing or
moderation of the neutron allows them to be more easily
absorbed by fissile nuclei, creating more fission events.

Control Rods:
Control rods are used in nuclear reactors to control the rate of
fission of the nuclear fuel, uranium or plutonium. They are
inserted into the core of the reactor and adjusted to control the
rate of the nuclear chain reaction, thereby the thermal power
output of the reactor, the rate of steam production, and the
electrical power output of the nuclear power station.
Control rods are composed of chemical elements such as
boron, cadmium, silver, hafnium or indium that are capable of
absorbing many neutrons without decaying themselves.
By absorbing neutrons, control rods prevent the neutron from
causing further fissions and provide real-time control of the
fission process, ensuring that it remains active while preventing
it from accelerating out of control.

13
Reflector:
A neutron reflector is any material that reflects neutrons. This
refers to elastic scattering rather than to a specular reflection.
The material may be graphite, beryllium, steel, tungsten
carbide, gold or other materials.
A neutron reflector can make an otherwise subcritical mass of
fissile material critical or increase the amount of nuclear fission
that a critical or supercritical mass will undergo.

Coolant:
Nuclear reactor uses a coolant system to extract as much as
heat as possible from nuclear fission and convert it into
electricity.
The coolant enters the core at low temperature and exists at a
higher temperature after collecting fission energy. This high-
temperature fluid is then directed to conventional
thermodynamic components where the heat is converted into
electric power.

14
Reactor pressure vessel:
A reactor pressure vessel (RPV) is a large cylindrical steel
vessel that contains the nuclear reactor core shroud, coolant
and the reactor core. It is the most critical pressure boundary in
a nuclear power plant and requires high reliability to withstand
high temperatures, high pressures and neutron irradiation.
The vessel is made of special fine-grained low alloy ferric steel,
well suited for welding and with a high toughness while
showing low porosity under neutron irradiations.

Biological shielding:
A biological shield is a complex of structure and materials
surrounding a nuclear reactor and its units, designed to absorb
neutrons and gamma radiation to biologically safe level.
The shielding materials are concrete and lead shield which
0.25mm thick for secondary radiation and 0.5mm thick for
primary radiation.

15
 WORKING OF A
NUCLEAR REACTOR
A nuclear reactor is driven by the splitting of atoms, a process
called fission, where a neutron is fired at an atom, which then
fissions into two smaller atoms and some additional neutrons.
Some of the neutrons that are released then hit other atoms,
causing them to fission too and release more neutrons. 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 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 system 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.

16
 PRINCIPLE OF REACTOR
CONTROL
When a nucleus captures a neutron the resulting compound
nucleus is unstable. It splits into two fragments, releases
energy and ejects some neutrons. If conditions are favourable,
neutrons ejected by the first chain reaction begins. If the energy
output from a reactor is to be maintained constant, one neutron
and not more than one from each fission must split another
nucleus (multiplication factor, k=1).
Otherwise control of chain reaction will not be possible. The
principle law of nuclear energy is
E = mc2
Where W- Energy(joules)
m- Mass (kilograms)
c- speed of light
(3*108m/sec) The main reactions inside a reactor are

17
238
U92 + 1n0 = 239U92 + γ
239
U92 has a half-life period of 23.5 min only and hence it is
unstable.
239
U92 + 0e-1 = 239Np93
239
Np93 has a short half-life and emits β - particles.
239
Np93 + 0e-1 = 239Pu93

TYPES OF REACTORS
Reactors are classified on the basis of the coolant used:
1. Pressurized water reactors
2. Pressurized heavy water reactors
3. Boiling water reactors
4. Supercritical water reactor
5. Reduced moderation water reactors
6. Liquid metal cooled reactors
7. Gas cooled reactors
8. Molten-salt reactor

18
 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE
The various activities associated with the production of
electricity from nuclear reactions are referred to collectively as
the nuclear fuel cycle. The nuclear fuel cycle starts with the
mining of uranium and ends with the disposal of nuclear waste.
With the reprocessing of used fuel as an option for nuclear
energy, the stages form a true cycle.

To prepare uranium for use in a nuclear reactor, it undergoes

the steps of mining and milling, conversion, enrichment and
fuel fabrication. These steps make up the 'front end' of the
nuclear fuel cycle.

19
After uranium has spent about three years in a reactor to
produce electricity, the used fuel may undergo a further series
of steps including temporary storage, reprocessing, and
recycling before the waste produced is disposed. Collectively
these steps are known as the 'back end' of the fuel cycle.

ADVANTAGE OF
NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

 OVERALL LOW COST OF OPERARTION

Nuclear power is relatively one of the most cost-effective and
reliable energy compared to other sources. Other than the
initial cost of construction, the cost of generating electricity is
cheaper and more sustainable than, other forms of energy such
as fossil fuels like oil, gas and coal.

20
All-year-round energy production is feasible, allowing for
favourable returns in initial investment due to no energy
production delays.

 CONSISTENT SOURCE OF ENERGY

Nuclear power has a consistent and predictable output. It is not
affected by weather conditions compared to other sources such
as wind and solar power.
Nuclear fission generates far more energy than the fossil fuel
combustions such as coal, oil or gas. The process produces
almost 8,000 time more power than typical fossil fuels.

 GENERATES LOW AMOUNTS OF POLLUTION

Nuclear power is the lowest carbon emission energy source
and a lower carbon footprint compared to other sources such
as fossil fuels.
The majority of carbon dioxide emissions primarily occur during
the fuelling process and construction of the plant but not during
electricity generation.

DISADVANTAGES

 EXPENSIVE TO CONSTRUCT
Nuclear power plants are affordable to operate but are
relatively expensive to construct. The expected cost to
construct a nuclear power plant ranges between US $9 billion
to $20 billion and often, the actual cost surpasses the original
cost estimates during its implementation/construction.

21
Aside from the cost of constructing a nuclear power plant,
nuclear reactors must allocate funds for waste that is
generated, which must be stored in cooled facilities with strict
security protocols.

 GENERATION OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE

While no emissions are produced in nuclear energy
generation, a bi-product of radioactive waste is developed.
The waste must be stored in secure facilities to avoid
polluting the environment. Radiations is not harmful in small
quantities, but radioactive waste from nuclear plants is
hazardous.
There is no way to destroy nuclear waste, the only current
solution is to seal and store it in deep underground facilities.

 RESTRICTED FUEL SUPPLY

Nuclear power plants are heavily dependent on thorium and
uranium to generate electricity. Before the supply of thorium
and uranium is depleted, a nuclear fusion or breeder reactor
will have to be created, otherwise, power generation will not
be possible.

NUCLEAR ACCIDENTS
A nuclear and radiation accident is defined as an event that
has led to significant consequences to people, the
environment of the facility.
Examples includes lethal effects to individuals, large
radioactivity release to the environment, reactor core melt.
22
 The prime example of a major nuclear accident is one in
which a reactor core is damaged and significant amounts of
radioactive isotopes are released, such as in the Chernobyl
disaster and the recent one is Fukushima Nuclear Disaster.
The impact of nuclear accidents has been a topic of debate
since the first nuclear reactors were constructed in 1954 and
has been a key factor in public concern about nuclear
facilities. Technical measures to reduce the risk of accidents
or to minimize the amount of radioactivity released to the
environment have been adopted, however human error
remains, and "there have been many accidents with varying
impacts as well near misses and incidents". As of 2014, there
have been more than 100 serious nuclear accidents and
incidents from the use of nuclear power.

Three Mile
Island

 NRX Reactor
The world’s first nuclear reactor Meltdown was the NRX
reactor at Chalk River Laboratories, Ontario, Canada in 1952.
Chalk River was also the site of two nuclear accidents in the
1950s. The first incident occurred on December 12, 1952,
when there was a power excursion and partial loss of coolant
in the NRX reactor, which resulted in significant damage to
23
the core. The control rods could not be lowered into the core
because of mechanical problems and human errors. Three
rods did not reach their destination and were taken out again
by accident. The fuel rods were overheated, resulting in a
meltdown. The reactor and the reactor building were
seriously damaged by hydrogen explosions. The seal of the
reactor vessel was blown up four feet, and 4,500 cubic
metres of radioactive water were found in the cellar of the
building. This water was dumped in ditches around 1,600
metres (5,200 ft) from the border of the Ottawa River. During
this accident some 10 kilocuries (400 TBq) of radioactive
material was released. Two years later the reactor was in use
again.

 THREE MILE ISLAND

The Three Mile Island accident was a partial meltdown of
the Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Plant Unit 2 (TMI-2)
reactor on the Susquehanna River in Londonderry Township,
Pennsylvania, near the Pennsylvania capital of Harrisburg. It
began at 4:00am on March 28, 1979, and released
radioactive gases and radioactive iodine into the
24
environment. It is the worst accident in USA’s commercial
nuclear power plant history. On the seven-
point logarithmic International Nuclear Event Scale, it is rated
Level 5 – “Accident with Wider Consequences”.
The accident began with failures in the non-nuclear
secondary system followed by stuck-open pilot-operated
relief valve in the primary system that allowed large amounts
of water to escape from the pressurized isolated coolant loop.
The mechanical failures were compounded by the initial
failure of plant operators to recognize the situation as a loss-
of-coolant accident (LOCA). TMI training and procedures left
operators and management ill-prepared for the deteriorating
situation. During the event, these inadequacies were
compounded by design flaws, including poor control design,
the use of multiple similar alarms, and a failure of the
equipment to clearly indicate coolant inventory level or the
position of the stuck-open piloted operated relief valve.
Clean up at TMI-2 started in August 1979 and officially ended
in December 1993, with a total cost of about $1 billion
(equivalent to $2 billion in 2022). TMI-1 was restarted in
1985, then retired in 2019 due to operating losses. Its
decommissioning is expected to be completed in 2079 at an
estimated cost of $1.2 billion.

 CHERNOBYL DISASTER
The worst nuclear accident to date is the Chernobyl
disaster which occurred in 1986 in the Ukrainian SSR, now in
Ukraine.
The Chernobyl disaster began on 26 April 1986 with the
explosion of the No. 4 reactor of the Chernobyl Nuclear
25
Power Plant, near the city of Pripyat in the north of
the Ukrainian SSR, close to the border with the Byelorussian
SSR, in the Soviet Union. It is one of only two nuclear energy
accidents rated at seven—the maximum severity—on
the International Nuclear Event Scale, the other being the
2011 Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan. The initial
emergency response and subsequent mitigation efforts
involved more than 500,000 personnel and cost an estimated
18 billion roubles—roughly US$68 billion in 2019, adjusted
for inflation. It is considered the worst nuclear disaster in
history.

CHERNOBYL REACTOR NO.4 BUILDING

The accident occurred during a test of the steam turbine's
ability to power the emergency feedwater pumps in the event
of a simultaneous loss of external power and coolant pipe
rupture. Following an accidental drop in reactor power to
near-zero, the operators restarted the reactor in preparation
for the turbine test with a prohibited control rod configuration.
Upon successful completion of the test, the reactor was then

26
shut down for maintenance. Due to a variety of factors, this
action resulted in a power surge at the base of the reactor
which brought about the rupture of reactor components and
the loss of coolant. This process led to steam explosions and
a meltdown, which destroyed the containment building. This
was followed by a reactor core fire which lasted until 4 May
1986, during which airborne radioactive contaminants were
spread throughout the USSR and Europe. In response to the
initial accident, a 10-kilometre (6.2 mi) radius exclusion
zone was created 36 hours after the accident, from which
approximately 49,000 people were evacuated, primarily
from Pripyat. The exclusion zone was later increased to a
radius of 30 kilometres (19 mi), from which an additional
68,000 people were evacuated.
Following the reactor explosion, which killed two engineers
and severely burned two more, an emergency operation to
put out the fires and stabilize the surviving reactor began,
during which 237 workers were hospitalized, of whom 134
exhibited symptoms of acute radiation syndrome (ARS).
Among those hospitalized, 28 died within the following three
months. In the following 10 years, 14 more workers (9 of
whom had been hospitalized with ARS) died of various
causes mostly unrelated to radiation exposure and 15
childhood thyroid cancer deaths were attributed to the
disaster as of 2011. A United Nations committee found that to
date fewer than 100 deaths have resulted from the fallout.
Model predictions of the eventual total death toll in the
coming decades vary. The most widely cited study conducted
by the World Health Organization in 2006 predicted 9,000
cancer-related fatalities in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia.
Following the disaster, Pripyat was abandoned and
eventually replaced by the new purpose-built city
of Slavutych. The Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant
sarcophagus was built by December 1986. It reduced the
27
 spread of radioactive contamination from the wreckage and
protected it from weathering. The confinement shelter also
provided radiological protection for the crews of the
undamaged reactors at the site, which were restarted in late
1986 and 1987. However, this containment structure was
only intended to last for 30 years, and required considerable
reinforcement in the early 2000s. The Shelter was heavily
supplemented in 2017 by the Chernobyl New Safe
Confinement, which was constructed around the old
structure. This larger enclosure aims to enable the removal of
both the sarcophagus and the reactor debris while containing
the radioactive materials inside. Clean-up is scheduled for
completion by 2065.

 FUKUSIMA NUCLEAR ACCIDENT

The Fukushima nuclear accident was a major nuclear
accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in
Ōkuma, Fukushima, Japan which began on March 11, 2011.
The proximate cause of the accident was the 2011 Tōhoku

28
earthquake and tsunami, which resulted in electrical grid failure
and damaged nearly all of the power plant's backup energy
sources. The subsequent inability to sufficiently cool reactors
after shutdown compromised containment and resulted in the
release of radioactive contaminants into the surrounding
environment. The accident was rated seven (the maximum
severity) on the INES by NISA, following a report by the JNES
(Japan Nuclear Energy Safety Organization).
No adverse health effects among Fukushima residents or
power station workers have been documented that are directly
attributable to radiation exposure from the accident. Criticisms
have been made about the public perception of radiological
hazards resulting from accidents and the implementation
of evacuations (similar to the Chernobyl nuclear accident), as
they caused much more harm than they prevented. Following
the accident, at least 164,000 residents of the surrounding area
were permanently or temporarily displaced (either voluntarily or
by evacuation order). This response resulted in at least 51
fatalities, with more attributed to subsequent stress or fear of
radiological hazards.
Investigations faulted lapses in safety and oversight, viz.,
failures in risk assessment and evacuation
planning. Controversy surrounds the disposal of treated
wastewater once used to cool the reactor, resulting
in numerous protests in neighbouring countries.

Is Nuclear Power the Future?

Nuclear power has numerous advantages and disadvantages,
causing the contentious argument about whether to find
alternatives or preserve the technology for future uses. Nuclear

29
power energy has the potential to be particularly dangerous,
however, the risk of disaster is relatively low.

While there is continued debate, enthusiasts of nuclear power

have said that being more dependent on nuclear energy will
reduce third-country energy reliance. However, reliance would
still be necessary as nuclear power facilities still require raw
materials such as uranium imported from Kazakhstan,
Australia, or Canada.

Adding further contention is the negative connotation

surrounding nuclear energy. Largely, individuals are only aware
of nuclear disasters and not the potential of low-carbon
positives. This is where the concept of renewable energy is
greatly favoured. However, ideally combining the two
procedures is expected to be a more feasible approach for
future sustainability.

Conclusion
Wide use of nuclear energy can be of great benefit for
mankind. It can bridge the gap caused by the inadequate coal
and oil supply. It should be used to the maximum extent to
solve power problem. With further developments, it is likely that
the cost of nuclear power stations will be lowered and that they
will soon be competitive. With the depletion of fuel reserve and
the question of transporting fuel over long distances, nuclear
power stations are taking an important place in the
development of the power potential of the nations of the world
today in context of “The changing pattern of power”.

30
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

 https://www.wikipedia.org/
 https://www.google.com/
 https://world-nuclear.org/
 https://www.thermopedia.com/

31