Power generation Nuclear energy

Power Generation Nuclear, and Fossil, prepared under contract AT (40-l)-4167, U. S. Atomic Energy Commission, 1973. 

Electric Utility Power Generation Renewable Energy Hydroelectric Facilities Nuclear Facilities... 

The dependence on nuclear power as a share of total electric power generation. (From Energy Information Administration, Official Energy Statistics, 2004.)... 

The nuclear power industry has been at a standstill in the United States based on fears that nuclear is too dangerous. Besides France at 80%, Belgium generates 60% of its power from nuclear, Switzerland 42%, Sweden 39%, Spain 37%, Japan 34% and U.K. 22%. These countries that generate a higher percentage of their power with nuclear energy than the U.S. have done so without any loss of life or harm to the environment. 

Nucleai energy is a principal contributor to the production of the world s electricity. As shown in Table 1, many countries are strongly dependent on nuclear energy. For some countries, more than half of the electricity is generated by nuclear means (1,3). There were 424 nuclear power plants operating worldwide as of 1995. Over 100 of these plants contributed over 20% of the electricity in the United States (see also Power generation). 

Hinton, Sir C., The place of the Calder Hall type of reactor in nuclear power generation, J. Brit. Nucl. Energy Conf, 1957, 2, 43 46. 

Th ese manufactured light sources are, perhaps ironically, largely dependent on the Sun. The radiant energy from the Sun has been stored in the fossilized remains of billions of creatures over millions of years and is used to power the electric light sources created by modern humans. The power generated by hydroelectric sources also is a result of solar evaporation and subsequent rainfall. Only nuclear reactors provide power independent of the Sun, which is, of course, the largest nuclear reactor in the solar system. 

See also Electric Power, Generation of Environmental Problems and Energy Use Explosives and Propellants Meitner, Lise Military Energy Use, Historical Aspects of Molecular Energy Nuclear Energy Nuclear Energy, Historical Evolution of the Use of Nuclear Fission Fuel Nuclear Fusion Nuclear Waste. 

Plutonium-239 is a fissile element, and vvill split into fragments when struck by a neutron in the nuclear reactor. This makes Pu-239 similar to U-235, able to produce heat and sustain a controlled nuclear reaction inside the nuclear reactor. Nuclear power plants derive over one-third of their power output from the fission of Pu-239. Most of the uranium inside nuclear fuel is U-238. Only a small fraction is the fissile U-235. Over the life cycle of the nuclear fuel, the U-238 changes into Pu-239, which continues to provide nuclear energy to generate electricity. 

Unlike radioisotope generators, nuclear reactors utilize the much more intense process of nuclear chain reaction. Since this process is controlled in the reactor, the energy output could be regulated depending on the system s requirements. It actually could produce twice its nominal power, if necessai"y. Nuclear reactors can pro dde greater electrical output than radioisotope generators using the same types of thermal converters. This output is comparable to that of fuel cells and solar arrays, while nuclear reactors are more durable and compact. 

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