GROUP 3

USING CASE STUDY EXPLAIN THE

CONCERN OVER NUCLEAR POWER
AND WEAPONS AS WELL AS THEIR
IMPACTS ON ENVIRONMENT
 WHAT IS NUCLEAR POWER


Is the use of nuclear reactions that release nuclear energy to
generate heat, which most frequently is then used in steam
turbines to produce electricity in a nuclear power plant.

The term includes nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear
fusion.

The nuclear fission of elements in the actinide series of the
periodic table produce the vast majority of nuclear energy in the
direct service of humankind.
 HOW NUCLEAR POWER WORKS


Atoms are constructed like miniature solar systems.

At the centre of an atom there is nucleus orbiting around
its electrons.
The nucleus is composed of atoms and neutrons that are
very densely packed together neutron – a type of
subatomic particle – collides with a uranium atom, the
atom can split
 In the nuclear power cycle,
small quantities of radiation are
released to the environment
during reactor operation and at
fuel production and spent fuel
management plants.
 Nuclear waste is to be deposited
in deep geological storage sites;
it does not enter the biosphere.
Its impact on the ecosystems is
minimal.
 Nuclear waste spontaneously
decays over time while stable
chemical waste, such as arsenic
or mercury, lasts forever
 Nuclear power is clean, safe,
reliable, compact, competitive
and practically inexhaustible.
 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF
NUCLEAR POWER

Environmental/Health Increased radiation levels.

Uranium miners experience higher rates of lung cancer, tuberculosis and other respiratory diseases.

Nuclear accident consequences.

Is dirty - enormous quantities of radioactive waste are created during the nuclear fuel process, including 2,000 metric tons of
high-level radioactive waste.

 12 million cubic feet of low-level radioactive waste in the U.S.

Avoided greenhouse gas emissions.

The production of 1,000 tons of uranium fuel generates approximately 100,000 tons of radioactive tailings and nearly one
million gallons of liquid waste containing heavy metals and arsenic in addition to radioactivity.

Uranium tailings have contaminated rivers and lakes.

Avoided acid gas emissions

.
 Avoided carcinogen emissions
 Avoided fuel extraction
 Long term climate change facilitator.
Nuclear Waste
When atoms split to release energy, the smaller atoms
that are left behind are often left in excited states,
emitting energetic particles that can cause biological
damage.
Nuclear waste is over 90% uranium.
the spent fuel (waste) still contains 90% usable fuel.
The longest living nuclides in nuclear waste are the
ones that can be used as fuel.
 Some of the longest lived atoms don’t decay to
stability for hundreds of thousands of years. (This nuclear
waste must be controlled and kept out of the environment
for at least that long.)
Is recyclable- (Once reactor fuel (uranium or thorium)
is used in a reactor, it can be treated and put into another
reactor as fuel).
 Cont’d

When recycled, the final waste that is left over decays to

harmless-( within a few 100yrs than 1milliion yrs as with
standard (unrecycled)nuclear waste).
Waste will eventually be stored deep underground.
 Cont’d
• Nuclear reactors contain a radioactive form of the element uranium. When
a neutron – a type of subatomic particle – collides with a uranium atom,
the atom can split.
• This process, known as nuclear fission, releases more neutrons. These
neutrons collide with other uranium atoms, triggering a chain reaction,
releasing enormous amounts of energy.
• Radioactive materials may emit different types of ionising radiation,
including alpha particles, beta particles and gamma rays.
 Main forms of ironising radiation
• Gamma rays, which are high-energy beams similar to x-rays. Travels at the speed
of light and only a very dense material (such as lead) can slow them down or stop
them.
• Alpha particles, which are high-energy, positively charged particles much slower
than gamma rays. Have far less penetrating power , a sheet of paper can stop them.
• Beta particles, which are negatively charged, much lighter than alpha particles, and
much faster moving. More penetrating than alpha particles, can be stopped by a
layer of aluminium a few millimetres thick.
 Effectiveness
Nuclear power has one of the smallest carbon footprints of any energy source.
 The vast majority of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions associated with nuclear
power stations arise during construction and fuel processing, not during
electricity generation.
However, is dirty ,dangerous and expensive.
Nuclear power would not be economically viable without government
support