Energy kilowatt hour

Plutonium has assumed the position of dominant importance among the trasuranium elements because of its successful use as an explosive ingredient in nuclear weapons and the place which it holds as a key material in the development of industrial use of nuclear power. One kilogram is equivalent to about 22 million kilowatt hours of heat energy. The complete detonation of a kilogram of plutonium produces an explosion equal to about 20,000 tons of chemical explosive. 

However, the iadustry s popular terminology is the energy consumption expressed ia terms of kilowatt hours per ton of (Pq[) oi of NaOH An estimate of this value requires a knowledge of cell voltage, current efficiency, and the efficiency of the rectifier used to convert a-c power to d-c. The energy consumption for producing a ton of is... 

Table 25. Energy Consumption of Operating Cells, Kilowatt-Hours per Ton of Chlorine...

In contrast with electrorefining, there is a minimum cell voltage of ca 1.67 V, below which there is no appreciable current flow. Hence, the energy yield is only ca 0.3 kg of copper per kilowatt hour, as contrasted with about 3 kg/kWh for electrorefining. 

In the membrane process, the chlorine (at the anode) and the hydrogen (at the cathode) are kept apart by a selective polymer membrane that allows the sodium ions to pass into the cathodic compartment and react with the hydroxyl ions to form caustic soda. The depleted brine is dechlorinated and recycled to the input stage. As noted already, the membrane cell process is the preferred process for new plants. Diaphragm processes may be acceptable, in some circumstances, but only if nonasbestos diaphragms are used. The energy consumption in a membrane cell process is of the order of 2,200 to 2,500 kilowatt-hours per... 

Your electric bill deals with a different unit of electrical energy called the kilowatt hour (kWh). The joule and the kilowatt hour are related through a simple conversion factor ... 

Prench cent laics arc about 1 Asicrican cent. In the United States, the cost from existing plants is about 3c per kilowatt hour, while a newly built nuclear plant will deliver energy at about 6c per kilowatt hour. 

It is more expensive to build nuclear plants which cost 2,000 per kilowatt-hour of output, compared with 1,500 for coal plants and 800 for gas plants, according to the International Energy Agency. It takes years to go through the regulatory hurdles for a new nuclear plant, build it and obtain a license to operate. Any new plants conceived today may be 10... 

The Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) is an industry lobbying group for nuclear power. Its studies show that nuclear production costs are lower than other central power sources, including coal. The NEI costs are 1.83 cents per kilowatt hours for nuclear, 2.07 cents for coal and 3.52 cents for natural gas. These are the plant operating costs. 

Power management may involve devices that regulate the on and off times of selected loads, such as fans, heaters, and motors. These devices reduce the electrical demand (kilowatts) and regulate energy consumption (kilowatt hours). In the past most of the energy savings has mainly been in heating. 

Electronic demand limiting includes devices that monitor and measure the actual demand and provide control actions to limit the operation of attached devices when the measured demand reaches a specified value. These devices require two signals, the kilowatt hour (kWh) or demand pulse, which indicates the units of electrical energy consumed and a timing pulse, which indicates the end of one demand pulse and the start of the next one. 

The fuel cell system emits much less carbon into the air than a combustion-based power plant. Less than one percent of the amount is produced from generating the same amount of power. The system is more expensive, costing several times as much per kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity produced than energy from a new natural gas fired turbine system. 

A single kilogram of radioactive metallic plutonium-238 produces as much as 22 million kilowatt-hours of heat energy. Larger amounts of Pu-238 produce more heat. However, Pu-238 is not fissionable, and thus it cannot sustain a chain reaction. However, plutonium-239 is fissionable, and a 10-pound ball can reach a critical mass sufficient to sustain a fission chain reaction, resulting in an explosion, releasing the equivalent of over 20,000 tons of TNT. This 10-pound ball of Pu-239 is only about one-third the size of fissionable uranium-235 required to reach a critical mass. This makes plutonium-239 the preferred fissionable material for nuclear weapons and some nuclear reactors that produce electricity. 

---