Without proper disposal sites, toxic waste dumps can damage a regional environment for hundreds of years. Nuclear fission can create clean-burning energy, but the radioactive waste products can be very harmful to the environment. That means this technology is a very real threat to continued life on our planet. About half of those deaths occurred on the same day. The atomic bombs, which start with the same fission reaction, that were dropped in Japan killed up to 226,000 people over a 4-month period. It can also be the foundation of powerful weapons that create mass casualties. Nuclear fission can be the foundation of cheap and clean power. This creates a radiation-exposure event that can be dangerous to human and animal health. In July 2017, underwater robots found melted nuclear fuel, up to 3 feet thick, underneath the core inside the primary containment vessel at their Unit 3 reactor. Tragic events such as Chernobyl and Fukushima show us just how dangerous the process of nuclear fission can be. It isn’t a renewable resource like wind or solar energy, but it is the closest thing we have at this level of energy density. Some types of nuclear power will even create their own fuel while creating the power we need, offering us the potential for recycling. Thorium works to create the fission process just like uranium does. When compared to coal and natural gas, nuclear fission is more than a full cent cheaper per kilowatt hour.Īlthough the fuel supply for nuclear fission is finite, we do have several options. Once a nuclear plant gets up and running, it is one of the most effective and cheapest forms of energy that we have. How cheap is nuclear fission? When the ongoing production rates are compared to solar and wind energy, the costs are virtually similar. The global average for coal? 170,000 deaths per trillion kilowatt hours, though if China is excluded from those figures, the numbers for coal drop to under 20,000. Rooftop solar has 440 deaths per trillion kilowatt hours. Even renewable energy resources, such as wind power, have a mortality rate of 150 deaths per trillion kilowatt hours. It has the lowest annual mortality rate of any energy resource.Īccording to Forbes, the global average mortality rate for nuclear fission is about 90 deaths per trillion kilowatt hours. It has one of the best energy densities that is known to humanity at this time.Ħ. This allows us to produce the amount of energy that is required without the need to tap into reserve products or stockpiled items to maintain the current quality of life. Nuclear fission creates a large amount of energy from a very small amount of fuel. It provides high concentrations of energy. Because this power resource can run without interruption for lengthy periods of time, no matter what the weather conditions may be.ĥ. We also have enough uranium stockpiled globally to provide energy resources for up to another century, with the ability to mine and refine more. The current nuclear fission plants that produce power are designed to operate for 30-50 years. Nuclear energy is 8,000 times more efficient than these resources. Wood heating is often 60% efficient or less, while coal heating can be 70-90% efficient when properly controlled. To create a similar level of energy, combustible materials would need to be consumed at a very rapid pace. It works for extended periods of time.Ī nuclear fission reaction that is well-controlled can continue to produce energy for 24-36 months. There is no CO2 released during this process.ģ. From global warming to air quality concerns, these are essentially eliminated when nuclear fission is used instead of combustion. That combustion releases particles and gases into the air that offer the potential of harmful effects. Many forms of traditional power generation require fossil fuels to be combusted. It offers a low-emission energy solution. Although other forms of energy are available, nuclear fission is one of the cheapest and allows more people to access the resources they need.Ģ. More than 30 nations use this form of energy at some level to create the power that is needed for the modern lifestyle to be lived. Nuclear fission is responsible for more than 10% of the electricity that the planet currently consumed. It can provide cheap energy resources for the planet. At the same time, a rather large amount of energy is released that can be captured for a variety of purposes.įirst discovered in 1938 by Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann, the advantages and disadvantages of nuclear fission must be carefully considered because of the amount of power this process generates. This causes the nucleus of an atom to split into smaller parts, creating free neutrons and gamma protons. It is either a process of radioactive decay or it forms from a nuclear reaction. Nuclear fission occurs through two processes.
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