Nuclear energy what does it look like

For more than 60 years, nuclear energy has provided the world with reliable electricity. Today, more than reactors are operating in more than 30 countries. More nations are exploring the use of nuclear energy, particularly as electricity demand increases and concerns about climate change rise.

International Atomic Energy Agency. World Association of Nuclear Operators. Radiation is energy in motion. There are many natural sources of radiation that we live with safely every day such as cosmic radiation from the sun. It is not possible for a nuclear energy plant to explode like a bomb, these plants are designed to produce electricity safely and reliably. If you stood at the site boundary for a whole year, you would receive less than a quarter of the radiation from a chest x-ray.

Who Operates the Plant? What is nuclear energy? How does it work? Nuclear reactor creates heat that is used to make steam The steam turns a turbine connected to an electromagnet, called a generator The generator produces electricity In a Pressurized Water Reactor PWR — the type of reactor being built in the UAE — high pressure prevents water in the reactor vessel from boiling. Uranium Enriched uranium is the fuel for nuclear reactors. Nuclear Fission Fission is the process of splitting a nucleus in two.

Pipes then feed the steam directly to a turbine to produce electricity. Nuclear reactors are the heart of a nuclear power plant. Nuclear Fission Creates Heat The main job of a reactor is to house and control nuclear fission —a process where atoms split and release energy.

Fission and Fusion: What is the Difference? There are two types of light-water reactors operating in America. Pressurized water reactors. Graphic by Sarah Harman U. Department of Energy. The core water cycles back to the reactor to be reheated and the process is repeated. Boiling Water Reactors. The rest of the facility is shown in purple.

This area is called the balance of plant. It includes the switchyard and transformers — which connect the plant to the electricity grid - support and office buildings, and other equipment.

Other Uses of Nuclear Technology. What are the three biggest myths in nuclear energy?