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Papers > Technology > nuclear reactor 2
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1. Plutonium 2
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nuclear reactor 2 |
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... The United States stopped making this element with the ban on manufacturing nuclear weapons. But with the continuing problem with our ever diminishing energy sources, some want us to begin using more nuclear energy and less energy from natural resources. ... When anyone mentioned plutonium or the word "nuclear" the idea of Hiroshima or Nagasaki being destroyed was the first thing people thought about. ... Then we started to build more reactors and produce more of the substance but mostly for our nuclear weapons programs. ... After such instances as the Hanford, Washington reactor meltdown and the accident in the U. ... The United States government banned nuclear testing and also ended the production of plutonium.(Nuclear Politics) Now we are in a dilemma. ... (Background) It has been rarely found in the earths crust but the majority of the substance has to be produced in the cores of nuclear reactors. ... (Plutonium) Radionuclide batteries used in pacemakers use Pu-238, while Pu-239 is used in reactors and for Nuclear weapons. ... The three major advantages to using this element are for an energy source, power for nuclear propulsion in space exploration and thermo-electric generators in cardiac pacemakers. The first use for plutonium, nuclear power, is obviously the most beneficial use. Plutonium 239 can be used to power nuclear reactors. The average nuclear reactor contains about 325 kilograms of plutonium within its uranium fuel. ... With the continually decreasing supply of coal and oil to power our nation, we need a substitute to complement our energy needs and right now the best replacement is that of nuclear energy.(Questions) At the moment there are one hundred and ten nuclear power plants in the United States and they produce one-fifth of the nations electricity. Nuclear energy has been proven to be the cheapest, safest, cleanest and probably the most efficient source of energy.(Questions) Nuclear power plants do not use as much fuel as the plants burning coal and oil. ... Nuclear power plants cannot contaminate the environment because they do not release any type of pollution. ... One kilogram of plutonium consumed for three years in a reactor can produce heat to give ten million kilowatt-hours of electricity. ... It is obvious that our future lies in the hands of nuclear reactors and the use of plutonium. The second major use for plutonium is for space exploration with its ability to power nuclear propulsion. Nuclear electric propulsion is using energy from plutonium to power space vehicles.(Nuclear Electric) One of the major goals of NASA space program is to, one day, get to Mars, and it looks like the only way it is going to happen in our current fiscal condition, is if we use plutonium, instead of chemical fuel, to power our explorations. Nuclear electric propulsion can be defined as using small plutonium based bricks, to power space vehicles for interplanetary trips. Nuclear electric systems provide very low thrust levels and use only very small amounts of fuel during the voyage.{(Nuclear Electric)&(NASA)} Using electric propulsion also allows the use of less fuel making the spacecrafts launch weight much lower than it would be with chemical fuel.(Nuclear Electric) The last beneficial use for plutonium is for cardiac pacemakers. |
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Title: nuclear reactor 2
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