Nuclear energy - perspective on public opinion

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More myths on nuclear power

1. It's a nuclear bomb waiting to happen.

People don't realize that in order to make a nuclear bomb, you will need to specifically made it to be a bomb. Nuclear power plant is designed specifically not to be a bomb. People always say what if the nuclear reactor blows up it will become a bomb. Well, even a normal gas power plant will blow up and becomes a bomb if you want it to. But ironically, no one is scared of a gas power plant blowing up. Nuclear power plant are designed to be safer than any other type of power plant. Even with the worst case scenario for a nuclear power plant it would still not blow up but it will melt down.

2. There's not enough uranium for the next 50-100 years.

With more advance reactor being created and used, the fuel efficiency will increase. It means, it will need less fuel to generate the same electricity. With new modern reactors having up to 99.5% efficiency, surely there will be enough uranium to last thousand of years. If you still not convinced, how about using thorium as nuclear fuel. As thorium is as 4 times more abundant than uranium, there is no problem in finding fuel for the reactor. Mind you, we are not going to use nuclear forever and ever. It's for us to buy enough time to develop new energy technology that are sustainable.

Nuclear power plant myths

1) Uranium is running out

There is 600 times more uranium in the ground than gold and there is as much uranium as tin. There has been no major new uranium exploration for 20 years, but at current consumption levels, known uranium reserves are predicted to last for 85 years. Modern reactors can use thorium as a fuel and convert it into uranium and there is three times more thorium in the ground than uranium.

Uranium is the only fuel which, when burnt, generates more fuel. In short, there is more than enough uranium, thorium and plutonium to supply the entire world’s electricity for several hundred years.

2) Nuclear is not a low-carbon option

During its whole life cycle, nuclear power releases three to six grams of carbon per kiloWatthour (GC kWh) of electricity produced, compared with three to 10 GC/kWh for wind turbines, 105 GC/kWh for natural gas and 228 GC/kWh for lignite (‘dirty’ coal).

3) Nuclear power is expensive

With all power generation technology, the cost of electricity depends upon the investment in construction , fuel, management and operation. Like wind, solar and hydroelectric dams, the principal costs of nuclear lie in construction. Acquisition of uranium accounts for only about 10 per cent of the price of total costs, so nuclear power is not as vulnerable to fluctuations in the price of fuel as gas and oil generation.

4) Reactors produce too much waste

Production of all the electricity consumed in a four-bedroom house for 70 years leaves about one teacup of high-level waste, and new nuclear build will not make any significant contribution to existing radioactive waste levels for 20-40 years.

5) Building reactors takes too long

The best construction schedules are achieved by the Canadian company AECL, which has built six new reactors since 1991, from the pouring of concrete to criticality (when the reactors come on-line), the longest build took six-and-a-half years and the shortest just over four years.

6) Leukemia rates are higher near reactors

Childhood leukemia rates are no higher near nuclear power plants than they are near organic farms. ‘Leukemia clusters’ are geographic areas where the rates of childhood leukemia appear to be higher than normal, but the definition is controversial because it ignores the fact that leukemia is actually several very different diseases with different causes. Men who work on nuclear submarines or in nuclear plants are no more likely to father children with leukaemia than workers in any other industry.

7) Reactors lead to weapons proliferation

More nuclear plants would actually reduce weapons proliferation. Atomic warheads make excellent reactor fuel; decommissioned warheads (containing greatly enriched uranium or plutonium) currently provide about 15 per cent of world nuclear fuel. Increased demand for reactor fuel would divert such warheads away from potential terrorists

8) Reactors are a terrorist target

Terrorists have already demonstrated that they prefer large, high visibility, soft targets with maximum human casualties rather than well-guarded, isolated, low-population targets. Any new generation of nuclear reactors will be designed with even greater protection against attack than existing plants, and with ‘passive’ safety measures that work without human intervention or computer control.


reference: www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/article/4259/
reference: www.wna.org
reference: www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/20/AR2009032001781.html
reference: www.cleanenergyinsight.org/interesting/wednesday-fact-series-npps-dont-cause-cancer/

What is actually Uranium?

Since there are a lot of talking about the nuclear and right now, as we go further into this kind of topic, so, one will think, what actually Uranium? So, there are some interesting part of Uranium for nuclear reactor that can be discussed with.

Well, uranium is a metal, like any other metal which is the heaviest occuring element on earth and occurs in many isotopes, like 16 isotopes. Before even the 20's era, uranium was not even has a high value in market, which means uranium still not highly demanded by the industries back in the time. Then until the last fifty years it was produced only as a by product and generally, for other essential purposes like nuclear power plant. Uranium was discovered by Martin Heinrich Klaproth in Germany in 1789. Uranium was the first element that was found to be fissile.

Like any other internal combustion engine, it uses gasoline or diesel as the sole fuel, which in nuclear power plant, Uranium is the sole fuel of the nuclear reactor, to generate energy which will be transfered to the turbine to generate electricity. About 1 kilogram of uranium-235 theoretically could produce about ~80 TERAjoules of energy, which is equivalent to the energy that could be produced by 3000 tonnes of coal! Since Malaysia is using coal as one of the main materials to generate electricity, imagine how nuclear can contribute a lot of energy enough to supply electricity to us about 50 years, 100 years? =)

Furthermore, with the high rate of fission, it can produce a lot of energy which is enough to really generate the electricity. If the fuel of uranium is sized about small pencil can produce the same amount of energy like 3000 tonnes of coal, this definitely means the rate of efficiency is good. But all the good things, no matter how it is good, there is must be some kind on disadvantage about it. Nuclear explosions produce radiation. The nuclear radiation harms the cells of the body which can make people sick or even kill them. Illness can strike people years after their exposure to nuclear radiation.

But some people have take this characteristics of uranium as an advantage to create the nuclear bomb. This is why many people are afraid once they hear about nuclear - NUCLEAR BOMB. The main different between nuclear reactor and nuclear bomb is that nuclear reactor is the generate energy and therefore electricity so that people can use it for daily purposes, wheres nuclear bomb is definitely for destruction. People always have any kind of ideas to misuse anything or everything that actually for other purposes.

This is why we come with this blog to really open many people's eyes so that we see this type of energy source is not the kind that they are thinking about right now, mostly. This is one of the solution to really help the environment. With the global warming is highly occurring now a days, with nuclear, we definitely can contribute in the reduction of global warming. So, come on, we think about it and really push for nuclear in Malaysia. Go nuclear for Malaysia.

Sad but True

After a long semester since September, we have finally arrived at the end of this semester. Which means, there will be no more lecture on MEHB513 since all Uniten students are having the final examination weeks. So, what actually we have achieved through out this course and what actually we think about this course.

Well, first thing first, this does not mean this blog is going to stop once this semester is finish. To all our readers, we will try to update as many post as can be maybe after we have finish the final exam. This is a part of learning process and to stop right here with this informative knowledge about Nuclear Energy, have given us the oppourtunity to learn and think about other technology like Nuclear Energy.

So, so far, we think this course has given us the knowledge and a lot of essential informations not just about the physics part, which means all the calculation but has given us thought about the environment. How to really help the environment and to sustain all the things that we have right now, especially the energy demand. With this course, we have realized the important of gaining the energy but at the same time, environment improve.

Nuclear Energy definitely a 'Green Technolgy' compare to other energy industries nowadays. Although it is has a lot of benefits compare with the existing energy industries, there are still some disadvantages of this system. It is normal since not all things in this world are perfect. But the imperfection can always be improved.

So, do we need the nuclear energy to be operated in the near future? The answer will always be Yes but are we ready to accept this technology in the near future? For us, the answer still 'Not Yet' but still, it depends on the situation in Malaysia in the next 10 to 20 years. Why we can do it? Because we have a prototype and research and development already about the nuclear energy. Furthermore, with the increase of nuclear engineers nowadays in Malaysia will give a lot of advantages to nuclear energy in Malaysia in the near future.

Energy demand will always increase, as well as the population. So, to really supply sufficient energy to the people, new device or technology is always welcome. Then, nuclear energy will always first come to mind. We hope that to all our readers, please comment and spread this information to any related people that you might know since nuclear energy in the future. We have start to think how actually we can change the misconception about nuclear energy to the people around us who still not aware the advantages of nuclear energy.

Furthermore, we would like to thank to all our lecturers who have taught us and supply the most important information though out the semester. We thank you a lot!. And all the best to all Uniten students in the coming examination.

GO NUCLEAR ENERGY!! =)

Our beloved nuclear lecturer
-dr nor azlan mostafa-

Evening with Dr. Michiro Furusaka

On the 8th of December 2011, we were given the honor by having Dr. Michiro Furusaka who gave a talk about

Quantum Beam

Dr. MICHIHIRO FURUSAKA, PhD, is a professor at the Graduate School of Engineering at Hokkaido University, Japan, working in the field of neutron instrumentation and optics. He is a word-renowned quantum Science and researcher and his research area includes condensed matter physics, biophysics, chemical physics and nuclear engineering. Currently, he is developing a new mini-focusing small angle neutron scattering instrument. The talk was held at Universiti Tenaga Nasional's college of engineering, room BM-1-003/004.

The talk on quantum beams was quite an eye opener for us students. Dr. Furusaka expose us with the potential of the quantum beam physics and how it can be applied. A little bit disappointed thou because most of us can barely heard him. The talk went on for about an hour and basically he covers 3 topics from quantum beam physics:

• Light (laser), X-ray, y-ray, electron beam, neutron beam --- all quantum beams
• Neutron scattering. Transmission electron magnifier, x-ray diffraction --- all applications of quantum technology
• X-ray, proton radiation therapy; medical application --- all applications of quantum technology

For further information on the talk you can check out this links:

http://nuclearedition.blogspot.com/

http://gogonuclear.blogspot.com/

Nuclear Poison

A nuclear poison is a substance with a large neutron absorption cross-section. Simply put, it can absorb neutron very effectively.

Where do these poisons come from? For starters, in the nuclear reactor, there will be material that is produce by the fission reaction that can absorb a lot of neutrons. Because we need neutrons to keep the reactor running, having less neutrons will result in less power being generated. In fact, if the poison level is unchecked, it may cause the nuclear chain reaction in the reactor to stop.

The radioactive materials in the reactor will decay. From time to time, there will be materials in the reactor that its decay process will result in a new substance that have a high neutron absorption cross section. This too will lead to an increase in the amount of nuclear poison.

Let's say that u have a jug of water. Then, a sponge is put inside the jug. After a while, you will noticed that the level of water inside the jug has decreased. Imagine that the water is the neutron and the sponge is the poison. Neutron level will be reduced by the existence of the poisons.

But sometimes, you will need to keep some amount of poison in the reactor. Why you ask? It is because the poisons can be used to regulate the reactivity of the reactor. For example, you want to run the reactor with a 200 grams of U-235. Since the radioactive material will decay, the amount of fuel will decrease over time. In order to solve the problem, you will need to put more than 200 grams in the reactor. The more fuel you use, the reaction rate will be higher. So to effectively control the neutron level, poison is put inside the reactor.