Nuclear power plant

A nuclear power plant or nuclear power station is a thermal power station in which the heat
source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical in all conventional thermal power stations the heat is used
to generate steam which drives a steam turbine connected to an electric generator which
produces electricity. As of 23 April 2014, the IAEA report there are 435 nuclear power reactors in
operation operating in 31 countries. Nuclear power stations are usually considered to be base
load stations, since fuel is a small part of the cost of production. Their operations and maintenance
(O&M) and fuel costs are, along with hydropower stations, at the low end of the spectrum and make
them suitable as base-load power suppliers. The cost of spent fuel management, however, is
somewhat uncertain.

Nuclear reactors
The nuclear reactor is the heart of the station. In its central part, the reactor core's heat is
generated by controlled nuclear fission. With this heat, a coolant is heated as it is pumped
through the reactor and thereby removes the energy from the reactor. Heat from nuclear
fission is used to raise steam, which runs through turbines, which in turn powers the electrical
generators.
Nuclear reactors usually rely on uranium to fuel the chain reaction. Uranium is a very heavy
metal that is abundant on Earth and is found in sea water as well as most rocks. Naturally
occurring uranium is found in two different isotopes: uranium-238 (U-238), accounting for
99.3% and uranium-235 (U-235) accounting for about 0.7%. Isotopes are atoms of the same
element with a different number of neutrons. Thus, U-238 has 146 neutrons and U-235 has
143 neutrons. Different isotopes have different behaviors. For instance, U-235 is fissile which
means that it is easily split and gives off a lot of energy making it ideal for nuclear energy. On
the other hand, U-238 does not have that property despite it being the same element.
Different isotopes also have different half-lives. A half-life is the amount of time it takes for half
of a sample of a radioactive element to decay. U-238 has a longer half-life than U-235, so it
takes longer to decay over time. This also means that U-238 is less radioactive than U-235
Since nuclear fission creates radioactivity, the reactor core is surrounded by a protective
shield. This containment absorbs radiation and prevents radioactive material from being
released into the environment. In addition, many reactors are equipped with a dome of
concrete to protect the reactor against both internal casualties and external impacts.

Steam turbine
The purpose of the steam turbine is to convert the heat contained in steam into mechanical
energy. The engine house with the steam turbine is usually structurally separated from the
main reactor building. It is so aligned to prevent debris from the destruction of a turbine in
operation from flying towards the reactor.

In the case of a pressurized water reactor, the steam turbine is separated from the nuclear
system. To detect a leak in the steam generator and thus the passage of radioactive water at
an early stage, an activity meter is mounted to track the outlet steam of the steam generator.
In contrast, boiling water reactors pass radioactive water through the steam turbine, so the
turbine is kept as part of the radiologically controlled area of the nuclear power station.

Generator
The generator converts kinetic energy supplied by the turbine into electrical energy. Low-pole
AC synchronous generators of high rated power are used.

Cooling system
A cooling system removes heat from the reactor core and transports it to another area of the
station, where the thermal energy can be harnessed to produce electricity or to do other
useful work. Typically the hot coolant is used as a heat source for a boiler, and the
pressurized steam from that drives one or more steam turbine driven electrical generators.

Safety valves
In the event of an emergency, safety valves can be used to prevent pipes from bursting or the
reactor from exploding. The valves are designed so that they can derive all of the supplied
flow rates with little increase in pressure. In the case of the BWR, the steam is directed into
the suppression chamber and condenses there. The chambers on a heat exchanger are
connected to the intermediate cooling circuit.

Feedwater pump
The water level in the steam generator and nuclear reactor is controlled using the feedwater
system. The feedwater pump has the task of taking the water from the condensate system,
increasing the pressure and forcing it into either the steam generators (in the case of a
pressurized water reactor) or directly into the reactor (for boiling water reactors).

Emergency power supply

Most nuclear stations require two distinct sources of offsite power feeding station service
transformers that are sufficiently separated in the stations's switchyard and can receive power
from multiple transmission lines. In addition in some nuclear stations the turbine generator
can power the station's house loads while the station is online via station service transformers
which tap power from the generator output bus bars before they reach the step-up
transformer (these stations also have station service transformers that receive offsite power
directly from the switch yard). Even with the redundancy of two power sources total loss of
offsite power is still possible. Nuclear power stations are equipped with emergency power.

Fission
When a large fissile atomic nucleus such as uranium-235 or plutonium-239 absorbs a neutron, it
may undergo nuclear fission. The heavy nucleus splits into two or more lighter nuclei, (the fission
products), releasing kinetic energy, gamma radiation, and free neutrons. A portion of these neutrons

may later be absorbed by other fissile atoms and trigger further fission events, which release more
neutrons, and so on. This is known as a nuclear chain reaction.
To control such a nuclear chain reaction, neutron poisons and neutron moderators can change the
portion of neutrons that will go on to cause more fission. Nuclear reactors generally have automatic
and manual systems to shut the fission reaction down if monitoring detects unsafe conditions. [3]
Commonly-used moderators include regular (light) water (in 74.8% of the world's reactors),
solid graphite (20% of reactors) and heavy water (5% of reactors). Some experimental types of
reactor have used beryllium, and hydrocarbons have been suggested as another possibility.

Nuclear power reactor types

Pressurized water reactors (PWRs) constitute the large majority of the world's nuclear power
plants (notable exceptions being the United Kingdom, Japan and Canada) and are one of three
types of light water reactor (LWR), the other types being boiling water reactors (BWRs)
and supercritical water reactors (SCWRs). In a PWR, the primary coolant (water) is pumped
under high pressure to the reactor core where it is heated by the energy generated by the fission of
atoms. The heated water then flows to a steam generator where it transfers its thermal energy to a
secondary system where steam is generated and flows to turbines which, in turn, spin an electric
generator. In contrast to a boiling water reactor, pressure in the primary coolant loop prevents the
water from boiling within the reactor. All LWRs use ordinary water as both coolant and neutron
moderator.
PWRs were originally designed to serve as nuclear marine propulsion for nuclear submarines and
were used in the original design of the second commercial power plant at Shipping port Atomic
Power Station. PWRs currently operating in the United States are considered Generation II reactors.
Russia's VVER reactors are similar to U.S. PWRs. France operates many PWRs to generate the
bulk of its electricity.
The boiling water reactor (BWR) is a type of light water nuclear reactor used for the generation of
electrical power. It is the second most common type of electricity-generating nuclear reactor after
the pressurized water reactor (PWR), also a type of light water nuclear reactor. The main difference
between a BWR and PWR is that in a BWR, thereactor core heats water, which turns to steam and
then drives a steam turbine. In a PWR, the reactor core heats water, which does not boil. This hot
water then exchanges heat with a lower pressure water system, which turns to steam and drives the
turbine. The BWR was developed by the Idaho National Laboratory and General Electric (GE) in the
mid-1950s. The main present manufacturer is GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, which specializes in the
design and construction of this type of reactor.
The boiling water reactor (BWR) uses demineralized water as a coolant and neutron moderator.
Heat is produced by nuclear fission in the reactor core, and this causes the cooling water to boil,
producing steam. The steam is directly used to drive a turbine, after which it is cooled in
a condenser and converted back to liquid water. This water is then returned to the reactor core,
completing the loop. The cooling water is maintained at about 75 atm (7.6 MPa, 10001100 psi) so
that it boils in the core at about 285 C (550 F). In comparison, there is no significant boiling allowed

in a pressurized water reactor (PWR) because of the high pressure maintained in its primary loop
approximately 158 atm (16 MPa, 2300 psi). The core damage frequency of the reactor was
estimated to be between 10 4 and 107 (i.e., one core damage accident per every 10,000 to
10,000,000 reactor years).

The different "generations" of nuclear Technology

A generation II reactor is a design classification for a nuclear reactor, and refers to the class of
commercial reactors built up to the end of the 1990s. Prototypical generation II reactors include
the PWR, CANDU, BWR, AGR, and VVER.
These are contrasted to generation I reactors, which refer to the early prototype of power reactors,
such as Shipping port, Magnox/UNGG, Fermi 1, and Dresden. The nomenclature for reactor
designs, describing four 'generations', was proposed by the US Department of Energy when it
introduced the concept of generation IV reactors.
The designation generation II+ reactor is sometimes used for modernized generation II designs built
post-2000, such as the ChineseCPR-1000, in competition with more expensive generation III
reactor designs. Typically, the modernization includes improved safety systems and a 60-year design
life.
Generation II reactor designs generally had an original design life of 30 or 40 years. This date was
set as the period over which loans taken out for the plant would be paid off. However, many
generation II reactor are being life-extended to 50 or 60 years, and a second life-extension to 80
years may also be economic in many cases. By 2013 about 75% of still operating U.S. reactors had
been granted life extension licenses to 60 years.
Fukushima Daiichi's three destroyed reactors are Mark I Boiling water reactors (BWR) designed
by General Electric. In 2015, unit 2 at the Watts Bar Nuclear Generating Station is likely to be the
last generation II reactor to come online.
A generation III reactor is a development of generation II nuclear reactor designs incorporating
evolutionary improvements in design developed during the lifetime of the generation II reactor
designs. These include improved fuel technology, superior thermal efficiency, passive nuclear
safety systems and standard design for reduced maintenance and capital costs. The first Generation
III reactor to begin operation was Kashiwazaki 6 (an ABWR) in 1996.
Due to the lack of reactor construction in the Western world, very few third generation reactors have
been built in developed nations. In general, Generation IV designs are still in development, and
might come online in the 2030s.
Generation IV reactors (Gen IV) are a set of nuclear reactor designs currently being researched for
commercial applications by the Generation IV International Forum, with Technology readiness
levels varying between the level requiring a demonstration, to economical competitive
implementation. They are motivated by a variety of goals including improved safety, sustainability,
efficiency, and cost.

Most of these designs are generally not expected to be available for commercial construction before
203040. Presently the majority of reactors in operation around the world are considered second
generation reactor systems, as the vast majority of the first-generation systems were retired some
time ago, and there are only a dozen or so Generation III reactors in operation (2014). Generation V
reactors refer to reactors that are purely theoretical and are therefore not yet considered feasible in
the short term, resulting in limited R&D funding.

Nuclear fuel
Nuclear fuel is a substance that is used in nuclear power stations to produce heat to
power turbines. Heat is created when nuclear fuel undergoes nuclear fission
Most nuclear fuels contain heavy fissile elements that are capable of nuclear fission, such as
uranium-235 or plutonium-239. When the unstable nuclei of these atoms are hit by a slow-moving
neutron, they split, creating two daughter nuclei and two or three more neutrons. These neutrons
then go on to split more nuclei. This creates a self-sustaining chain reaction that is controlled in
a nuclear reactor, or uncontrolled in a nuclear weapon. The processes involved in mining, refining,
purifying, using, and disposing of nuclear fuel are collectively known as the nuclear fuel cycle.
Not all types of nuclear fuels create power from nuclear fission; plutonium-238 and some other
elements are used to produce small amounts of nuclear power by radioactive decay in radioisotope
thermoelectric generators and other types of atomic batteries. Nuclear fuel has the highest energy
density of all practical fuel sources.