Nuclear power, advantage

The paper presents the results from systematic comparisons of contrast and resolution obtained with different types of radiation sources on steel thicknesses from 5 to 40 mm. These results have been taken into account with the definitions of the European standard for radiographic inspection of weldments (EN 1435) that is approved since 1997. Conclusions from practical investigations on pipe line sites, in petrochcemical plants and in nuclear power stations will be discussed as well. Furthermore, the presentation will stipulate a variety of advantages obtained from the new source in terras of coUimation and radiation protection. 

Natural gas also has an efficiency advantage in electricity generation. The economic and operational superiority of gas-fired combustion turbines and combined-cycle machines (and prospectively, the superiority of gas-powered fuel cells) relative to coal-and nuclear-powered steam turbines made the combination of natural gas and natural gas turbines the supply favorite of most electric utilities in the 1990s. 

Once all these requirements are met, it may be possible to get to a point when the public will see that the advantages of nuclear power outweigh the risks. Only then might it reduce its opposition... 

It seems increasingly clear that the operating cost (operation and maintenance plus fuel costs) is very competitive with the same cost of its main competitors, coal-and gas fired plants. Therefore, the economic advantage of life extension is obvious, and also the clear trend to operate existing nuclear power plants on base load only. Even in France where there are too many nuclear plants to operate them all on base load, there is a trend to decrease the share of nuclear power in total production in view to operate eventually all... 

The primary advantage of nuclear energy is that enormous amounts of energy are liberated per unit mass of fuel. Also, the air pollution (oxides of S, N, C and particulate matter) caused by fossil fuel electric power plants is not a problem with nuclear energy plants. In European countries, where fossil fuel reserves are scarce, most of the electricity is generated by nuclear power plants for these reasons. 

Nuclear power plants are used to generate electricity. At present there are more than 400 nuclear power plants operating all around the world. About 100 of them are in the United States and 200 are in Europe. The advantage of nuclear power is that no carbon-based pollutants are emitted as with the burning of fossil fuels. Flowever, the disadvantage is that the process produces nuclear wastes. Some... 

Processes for the isolation and purification of plutonium, including the enrichment of spent nuclear reactor fuels, arc described in the entry on Nuclear Power Technology. These processes take advantage of Pu s several oxidation states, each of which has different chemical properties. The processes may involve carrier precipitation, solvent extraction, and ion exchange. 

The advantages of nuclear power plants include the fact that they operate at a 90% capacity factor (loading). Also, 1 kg of natural uranium generates about as much electricity as 20,000 kg of coal. In contrast to fossil fuels, nuclear power does not contribute to global warming. In the past, the cost of... 

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