Intro : Nucleur Energy

Nuclear energy involves a controlled reaction to split atoms of nuclear fuel, typically uranium or plutonium, creating two new atoms. When accomplished on a reasonable scale, this reaction releases an incredible amount of heat, which can be used to heat water, producing steam and powering steam turbines, which can then be used to produce electricity.

A nuclear power plant, with standard cement containment vessel

(In fact, nuclear energy starts with Albert Einstein—his classic formula, E = mc^2 actually describes how much energy is released when an atom is split. It’s a lot. To put it in perspective, the energy contained in a pound of uranium used for nuclear fuel (i.e., enriched) is equal to roughly one million gallons of gasoline.)

However, when most people think of nuclear energy, they recall the 1979 Three Mile Island accident in Pennsylvania or the 1986 tragedy involving a Soviet era RBMK reactor at Chernobyl which resulted in an uncontrollable runaway reaction causing a steam break/explosion. Chernobyl became the worst nuclear power disaster ever to occur and has dramatically impacted the public's perception of nuclear power safety. In fact, fears of repeats of these accidents, safety concerns, disputes over storage of nuclear waste, and a web of government regulations has limited nuclear power plant developments over the past 25 years. The last new nuclear plant in the U.S. was commissioned in 1996.

But nuclear remains a force in electricity generation, accounting for roughly 17% of electricity generation around the world. With over 100 nuclear plants, the U.S. depends heavily on nuclear energy. As of February 2010, there were 440 nuclear reactors operating worldwide and a total of 111 reactors under construction or planned for completion by 2020.

Locations of nuclear power plants

Across countries, nucleur’s prevalence is widely variable— some countries, such as France, generate as much as 80% of their electricity from nuclear power, while others, such as Austria, Sweden, and Italy, have banned nuclear generation as a result of safety concerns or public fears.

Moreover, nuclear power has witnessed a recent renaissance, due to China's rising demand for energy, fears over greenhouse gas emissions, and rising prices for alternatives natural gas and coal. Nuclear energy is not based on fossil fuels, and therefore emits fewer greenhouse gases than competitors coal and natural gas, even accounting for its lifecycle emissions, which include the costs of constructing the plant, transporting the fuel, etc. Moreover, nuclear energy is not as exposed to price fluctuations in oil and natural gas, since uranium and plutonium are used to fuel nuclear plants.

Since oil prices have gone through the roof, nuclear has caught its second wind; at the middle of 2009, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) had received 17 applications for combined construction and operating licenses (COL) for 26 new nuclear reactors. The U.S. currently has 11 nuclear plants, but plans to double that number by 2020 and triple it by 2025