The Physics behind the working of

Nuclear Reactors

Made By- Taniya Gupta B.Sc Phy (H) II yr. Miranda House

A brief overview:
Nuclear Reactors convert the thermal energy released from nuclear fission.

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, releasing kinetic energy, gamma radiation and free neutrons; collectively known as fission products. 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. Uranium constantly undergoes spontaneous fission very slowly. Thus, that is why Uranium emits radiation, and is a natural choice for the induced fission which is a foremost requirement of nuclear power plants.

Uranium is the principle element used in nuclear reactors

The nuclear chain reaction can be controlled by using neutron poisons, which
absorb excess neutrons, and neutron moderators which reduces the velocity of fast neutrons, thereby turning them into thermal neutrons, which are more likely to be absorbed by other nuclei. Increasing or decreasing the rate of fission has a corresponding effect on the energy output of the reactor. Commonly used moderators include regular water (75% of the world's reactors), solid graphite (20% of reactors) and heavy water (5% of reactors). Beryllium has also been used in some experimental types, and hydrocarbons have been suggested as another possibility.

Heat generation:
The reactor core generates heat in a number of ways:
1. The kinetic energy of fission products is converted to thermal energy when these nuclei collide with nearby atoms. 2.Some of the gamma rays produced during fission are absorbed by the reactor, their energy being converted to heat.

3.Heat produced by the radioactive decay of fission products and materials that have been activated by neutron absorption. This decay heat source will remain for some time even after the reactor is shut down.

FactA kilogram of uranium-235 (U-235) converted via nuclear processes contains approximately three million times the energy of 1 kg of coal burned conventionally.

Cooling:
A nuclear reactor coolant usually water but sometimes a gas or a liquid metal is circulated past the reactor core to absorb the heat that it generates. The heat is then carried away from the reactor and is then used to generate steam. Most reactor systems employ a cooling system that is physically separated from the water that will be boiled to produce pressurized steam for the turbines, like the pressurized water reactor. But in some reactors the water for the steam turbines is boiled directly by the reactor core.

Reactivity control:
The power output of the reactor is controlled by controlling how many neutrons are able to create more fissions. Control rods that are made of a nuclear poison are used to absorb neutrons. Absorbing more neutrons in a control rod means that there are fewer neutrons available to cause fission, so pushing the control rod deeper into the reactor will reduce its power output, and extracting the control rod will increase it. In some reactors, the coolant also acts as a neutron moderator. A moderator increases the power of the reactor by causing the fast neutrons that are released from fission to lose energy and become thermal neutrons. Thermal neutrons are more likely than fast neutrons to cause fission, so more neutron moderation means more power output from the reactors. If the coolant is a moderator, then temperature changes can affect the density of the coolant/moderator and therefore change power output. A higher temperature coolant would be less dense, and therefore a less effective moderator.

In other reactors the coolant acts as a poison by absorbing neutrons in the same way that the control rods do. In these reactors power output can be increased by heating the coolant, which makes it a less dense poison. Nuclear reactors generally have automatic and manual systems to insert large amounts of poison (often boron in the form of boric acid) into the reactor to shut the fission reaction down if unsafe conditions are detected or anticipated.

Electrical power generation:

The energy released in the fission process generates heat, some of which can be converted into usable energy. A common method of harnessing this thermal energy is to use it to boil water to produce pressurized steam which will then drive a steam turbine that generates electricity.

Now in detail

How Fission occurs in Uranium ?

An induced nuclear fission event. A neutron is absorbed by the nucleus of a uranium-235 atom, which in turn splits into fast-moving lighter elements (fission products) and free neutrons. Though both reactors and nuclear weapons rely on nuclear chain reactions, the rate of reactions in a reactor is much slower than in a bomb.

When a neutron approaches a uranium-235 nucleus , the probability of a U235 atom capturing a neutron as it passes by is high. In fact, under reactor conditions, one neutron ejected from each fission causes another fission to occur. As soon as the nucleus captures the neutron, it splits into two lighter atoms and throws off two or three new neutrons (the number of ejected neutrons depends on how the U-235 atom splits). The process of capturing the neutron and splitting happens very quickly, on the order of picoseconds (10-12sec). The decay of a single U-235 atom releases approximately 200 MeV (million electron volts).

The following equation is the example of the different products that can be produced when 235U fissions:
235U + 1 neutron 2 neutrons + 92Kr + 142Ba + ENERGY

Another detailed diagram of Nuclear Fission in Uranium

Now,Inside a Nuclear Power Plant

Working
To turn nuclear fission into electrical energy, Firstly, we require is that a nuclear power plant should be able to control the energy given off by the enriched uranium and allow it to heat water into steam. Now for that an enriched Uranium is typically formed into 2.5-cm-long pellets, each with approximately the same diameter. Next the pellets are arranged into long rods, and the rods are collected together into bundles, then these bundles are submerged in water inside a pressure vessel. The water acts as a coolant. For the reactor to work, the submerged bundles must be slightly supercritical. Left to its own devices, the uranium would eventually get overheated and will melt. To prevent overheating, control rods made of a material that absorbs neutrons are inserted into the uranium bundle using a mechanism that can raise or lower the control rods. Raising and lowering the control rods allow operators to control the rate of the nuclear rxn. When an operator wants the uranium core to produce more heat, the control rods are raised out of the uranium bundle (thus absorbing fewer neutrons) and to create less heat, they are lowered into the uranium bundle. The rods can also be lowered completely into the uranium bundle to shut the reactor down in the case of an accident or to change the fuel. The Uranium bundle acts as an extremely high-energy source of heat. It heats the water and turns it into steam. The steam drives a turbine, which spins a generator to produce power. In some nuclear power plants, the steam from the reactor goes through a secondary intermediate heat exchanger to convert another loop of water to steam, which drives the turbine. The advantage to this design is that the radioactive water/steam never contacts the turbine.

And thus the chain rxn in the uranium atom goes on

How to stop the chain rxn if needed?

In classical Nuclear plants they use Uranium bars put very close together inside water, in this way the neutrons from one bar hit the other generating more neutrons and so on. So, for stopping the chain reaction what we need to do is to stop the neutrons from hitting the other uranium bars. And this is done by inserting the uranium bars inside carbon cases, the carbon absorbs the neutrons and don't let them hit the other uranium bars. New reactors like the French and Japanese fast reactors, work in a different way, but the principle remains the same, controlling the amount of neutrons flying free in the process, allow you to control the amount of energy and heat you get.

Now as we know that there is a real chance of posing life threatening risks if in case a radioactive material gets leaked out in the atmosphere

So, to overcome such a menace situation, A concrete liner typically houses the reactor's pressure vessel and acts as a radiation shield. That liner, in turn, is housed within a much larger steel containment vessel. This vessel contains the reactor core, as well as the equipment plant workers use to refuel and maintain the reactor. The steel containment vessel serves as a barrier to prevent leakage of any radioactive gases or fluids from the plant. An outer concrete building serves as the final outer layer, protecting the steel containment vessel. This concrete structure is strong enough to survive the kind of massive damage that might result from earthquakes or a crashing jet airliner. These secondary containment structures are necessary to prevent the escape of radiation or radioactive steam in the event of an accident. The absence of secondary containment structures in Russian nuclear power plants allowed radioactive material to escape in the environment, in recent past in 1986.

As you can see in the picture below that a concrete liner houses this power plant which acts as a radiation shield.

A few more images of the nuclear reactors across the world housed in a concrete liner

Nuclear power provides electricity for a significant percentage of the population. This nuclear power plant is located near Dukovany, Czech Republic.

This containment building houses the nuclear reactor

This nuclear containment helps prevent catastrophic events like the accident at Chernobyl

The nuclear reactor is the heart of a nuclear power plant. The concrete keeps the radiation from escaping

These pipes carry the steam from the reactor that is used to produce electricity.

Power station reactors in INDIA

Name
Tarapur Atomic Power Station

Location
Tarapur, Maharashtra

Rajasthan Atomic Power Station Rawatbhata, Rajasthan Madras Atomic Power Station Narora Atomic Power Station Kakrapar Atomic Power Station Kaiga Atomic Power Station Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant Kalpakkam, Tamilnadu Narora, Uttar Pradesh Kakrapar, Gujarat Kaiga, Karnataka Kudankulam, Tamilnadu

Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor

Kalpakkam, Tamilnadu

Pros and Cons of Nuclear Power Plants

Whether one views nuclear power as the promise for a better tomorrow or a whopping down payment on a mutant-filled apocalypse, there's a good chance that one won't be easily converted to the other side. After all, nuclear power boasts a number of advantages, as well as its share of downright depressing negatives. As far as positives go, nuclear power's biggest advantages are tied to the simple fact that it doesn't depend on fossil fuels. Coal and natural gas power plants emit carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change. With nuclear power plants, CO2 emissions are minimal. According to the Nuclear Energy Institute, the power produced by the world's nuclear plants would normally produce 2 billon metric tons of CO2 per year if they depended on fossil fuels. In fact, a properly functioning nuclear power plant actually releases less radioactivity into the atmosphere than a coal-fired power plant. By not depending on fossil fuels, the cost of nuclear power also isn't affected by fluctuations in oil and gas prices. As for negatives, nuclear fuel may not produce CO2, but it does provide its share of problems. Historically, mining and purifying uranium hasn't been a very clean process. Even transporting nuclear fuel to and from plants poses a contamination risk. And once the fuel is spent, you can't just throw it in the city dump. It's still radioactive and potentially deadly

Continuation.. On average, a nuclear power plant annually generates 20 metric tons of used nuclear fuel, classified as high-level radioactive waste. When you take into account every nuclear plant on Earth, the combined total climbs to roughly 2,000 metric tons yearly. All of this waste emits radiation and heat, meaning that it will eventually corrode any container and can prove lethal to nearby life forms. As if this weren't bad enough, nuclear power plants produce a great deal of low-level radioactive waste in the form of radiated parts and equipment. Nuclear waste can pose a problem, and it's the result of properly functioning nuclear power plants. When something goes wrong, the situation can turn catastrophic.

So, Some people think of nuclear power as a threatening menace, while others see it as a long-term source of greener electricity.

Thank You