Cooling Systems in Nuclear Reactors

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Cooling Systems in Nuclear Reactors

Introduction

Nuclear power plants make up 15% of the world’s electricity production. The US produces the most nuclear power, with France and Japan following second and third. Nuclear reactors are used in nuclear power plants to produce heat that will create steam to produce energy. Nuclear power plants convert thermal energy released from nuclear fission. The core of a nuclear reactor builds up heat and this heat needs to be controlled and filtered out somewhere. The reactor needs to remain cool—usually by water but is sometimes cooled by a gas or a liquid metal.

Cooling Systems

The basic fuel for a nuclear power plant is uranium. The reactor core is what contains the radioactive material in a nuclear power plant. This radioactive material will continue to give off heat for a long time, and unless this heat is removed, it will build up and will eventually cause damage to the radioactive fuel or the reactor. The nuclear reactor coolant, as described above, consists of water, gas, or a liquid metal. This coolant is circulated through the reactor core and absorbs the heat that is generated and turns it into steam. This steam becomes pressurized and causes the turbines to turn along with the generator, which generates electricity. Figure 1 shows the flow of the coolant (in this case, water) indicated by the arrows and the color of the water represents the waters form. The water is cool as it is pumped from the condenser into the containment structure. As the water circulates in the containment structure, it is heated in the reactor core and cooled again in the steam generator. The heat from the water is released as steam and the steam is pressurized to move the turbines. The movement of the t...

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...g radioactive material outside the reactor. In the next five to fifteen years, researchers are looking to develop a new kind of power plant by substituting water for helium that would produce a smaller carbon footprint on the climate. (849 words without the quote)

Bibliography

1. http://www.nationalstrategy.com/Portals/0/documents/Winter%202013/Faulx-Nuclear.pdf Winter 2013 Volume 22, Issue 1

2. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/nuclear-energy-primer/

3. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-to-cool-a-nuclear-reactor/

4. http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/Nuclear-Fuel-Cycle/Power-Reactors/Nuclear-Power-Reactors/

5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pressurized_water_reactor#Disadvantages

P.S: The Plagiarism Checker said that the IP address has reached its daily limit of free uses, so I couldn’t submit my report to check for plagiarism.

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