Essay on the topic of benefits and drawbacks of Nuclear Energy

The benefits and disadvantages of nuclear energy have made this energy that is alternative probably the most controversial currently available. Advocates pros and cons nuclear energy are equally passionate about their causes. Knowing the benefits and drawbacks of the energy source can help you make a more informed decision about your own personal energy use.

Nuclear Power Source

Nuclear energy is used to create electricity. Heat generated through the splitting of uranium atoms in an activity referred to as fission is employed to produce steam. This steam in turn powers turbines, that are used to create the electricity that supplies the surrounding community.

Nuclear power stations are set up in a multiple-step process that has been made to help support the energy and many of its negative byproducts. This technique alone may be the base of several pros and cons because of this energy source.

Features of Nuclear Energy

Despite potential drawbacks in addition to controversy that surrounds it, nuclear energy does have a few advantages over various other types of energy production.

Less uranium is required to produce the amount that is same of as coal or oil, which lowers the cost of producing the exact same quantity of energy. Uranium is also less costly to procure and transport, which further lowers the cost.

Reliability

When a nuclear power plant is functioning properly, it could run uninterrupted for up to 540 days. This results in fewer brownouts or other power interruptions. The running of the plant can be not contingent of weather or suppliers that are foreign that makes it more stable than many other kinds of energy.

No Carbon Dioxide

The plant itself does not give off greenhouse gasses while nuclear energy does have some emissions. Research indicates that what life-cycle emissions that the plants do give off are on par with renewable energy sources such as wind power. This lack of greenhouse gases can be very attractive to some consumers.

One of the reasons that nuclear energy falls under fire so frequently is a result of the many disadvantages it brings.

Raw Material

Uranium is used along the way of fission given that it’s a naturally unstable element. Which means special precautions must certanly be taken during the mining, storing and transporting of the uranium, along with the storing of any waste product to avoid it from giving off harmful quantities of radiation.

Nuclear fission chambers are cooled by water, in both the boiling water reactors (BWRs) and water that is pressurized (PWRs). In PWRs, cold water enters through primary pipes in addition to secondary pipes remove the hot water away, and so the coolant is not in contact with the reactor. The water can get contaminated and is transported to the rest of system in BWRs, water runs through the reactor core, so if there is any leakage of fuel.

Used nuclear rods are immersed in water into the spent fuel pool, to cool them before they can be transported for disposal. Radio-active water can leak away from doors in the pool once the seals that maintain the doors airtight malfunction.

Other pollutants released by nuclear plants are heavy metals and pollutants that are toxic harm plant and animal life in aquatic bodies. Water is released to the atmosphere after being cooled but is still warm and damages the ecosystem for the sinks it flows into.

If the uranium has finished splitting, the resulting radioactive byproducts need to be removed. The storage of the by-product could lead to contamination through leaks or containment failures while recycling efforts of this waste product have been undertaken in recent years.

Nuclear reactors are built with several safety systems designed to support the radiation given off within the fission process. When these safety systems are properly installed and maintained, they function adequately. If they are not maintained, have structural flaws or were improperly installed, a nuclear reactor could release harmful quantities of radiation in to the environment during the process of regular essay writer use. If a containment field were to rupture suddenly, the resulting leak of radiation could be catastrophic.

There have been several nuclear reactors that have failed and been shutdown which can be still in existence. These abandoned reactors are trying out land that is valuable, could possibly be contaminating the areas surrounding them, yet tend to be too unstable to be removed.

With so advantages that are many disadvantages of nuclear energy, it’s not surprising that nuclear power remains perhaps one of the most controversial types of energy in existence. Get educated on this topic to produce an decision that is informed your views of the use.