Topic 8

Nuclear Fission and the Nuclear Reactors

Important Events
• In 1938 German scientists Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann discovered
that uranium bombarded by neutrons sometimes produce smaller
nuclei roughly half the size of the original uranium nucleus.

• Lise Meitner and Otto Frisch, two refugees from Nazi Germany working
in Scandinavia realized that uranium nucleus, after absorbing a neutron
had split into two roughly equal pieces.

• This was called nuclear fission because of its resemblance to biological

fission, the cell division
The Fission Process
• When a uranium nucleus is bombarded with a neutron it splits into
Ba-141 and Kr-92 + 3 neutrons. The reaction is shown below.

• U-236 exist only for less than 10-12 s

• Many other fission reactions occur
• U-235 bombarded by a neutron
produces U-236 which is unstable.

U-236 exist for less than 10-12 s and

split into Kr-91 and Ba-142 and
3 neutrons.
• More than 20 elements are found
among the fission fragments. Figure
shows the mass distribution of fission
fragments of U-236.
Energy released in fission reaction
Example. Calculate the energy released in the fission reaction below.

•
Chain Reaction
• In a given mass of U-235 one
neutron will collide with one
U-235 nucleus emitting three
neutrons. These three
neutrons collide with three
U-235 emitting nine
neutrons and so on. Control
rods are usually cadmium or
boron for nuclear reactors.
Nuclear Power
Plant
• Schematic diagram
Example: University Physics by Young and Freedman
Try This!
1. Find the energy released in the fission reaction below.

2. Suppose the average power consumption the whole day of a typical

house is 300 MW. What mass of U-235 fuel would have to undergo
fission to supply the electrical needs of such house in one year?
(Assume 200MeV is released per fission)
End