Nuclear Power Presentation on 11/08/2017

(last critique update 11 AM, Nov 20^th)

Rebekah Aguilar Wonji Park Ramsey Basma Joe Rubio

Summary:                      (Poor summary, a summary is a concise synopsis)

● Enrico Fermi and Leo Szilard worked on the theory behind the nuclear reactor in the 1930s and construction on the 1st nuclear reactor was completed in 1942 in Chicago.

● Nuclear reactors were popular in the 1960s and decreased in the 1980s. In 1991, the nuclear industry peaked at 122 reactors which powered 22% of USA’s overall energy.

● There are a lot more rectors on the east side of the US, which is a direct correlation to recorded earthquake activity.

● Nuclear reactors work by having the hot core heat up water which moves the turbine that converts movement into electricity we use. Meanwhile, water from outside source cools down steam to start the water-heat-steam cycle. The outsource water is unaffected and does not come into direct contact with nuclear particles from the core.

● Nuclear power requires 3-5% of uranium-235 as fuel; however, natural uranium is 0.07%. Therefore, uranium-238 must be enriched to increase the percentage of uranium-235. Uranium-238 does not participate in fission and cannot be used as fuel.

● The operation cost of uranium-235 enrichment is controlled by separation work units or SWU per year. For instance, 121.80 kg of uranium-235 costs $15,926.

● 20% of uranium-235 are classified as research reactors while 90% is considered weapon reactors.

● Centrifuge is the most preferential and affordable enrichment method for many countries due to advancement of centrifuge technology and mass production of uranium-235 at low operating costs.

● The most common type of nuclear reactors are fast breeder reactors (FBR) aka liquid metal reactors (LMFBR) that doesn’t require moderators and uses molten salt as a coolant.

● Nuclear waste are stored either 10-m or more below ground level or in isolated caverns based on the radiation level. Low-level and short-lived intermediate level radioactive wastes are stored in near-surface disposal while high-level and long-lived intermediate level radioactive wastes are stored in deep geological disposal that are between 250-1000 m below depth in mined repositories, i.e. Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico.

● Nuclear energy is the most efficient of all electricity sources so much so that the energy produced from the fission of one gram of uranium is equivalent to the energy produced from the combustion of 3 tons of coal

● It provides energy without direct greenhouse gas emissions and there are currently 392 GW of installed nuclear power generation capacity in 31 countries which generated 14% of total global electricity

● However, Nuclear power carries the risks and challenges associated with nuclear meltdowns, storage of radioactive waste, and nuclear proliferation

● Nuclear fusion is the energy source of the universe.

● It occurs in the sun at over 12 million degrees.

● Heavy hydrogen must be heated into a plasma state until its momentum can be overcome the powerful electrical repulsion between the positively charged particles.

● To produce viable energy, the energy input required to fuse atoms must be substantially less than the energy the fusion produces.

● Superheated plasma must be contained and kept hot. This is done through magnetic confinement such as the Tokamak machine at JET or with inertial confinement such as is done with 192 lasers at NIF.

● Viable fusion will produce no greenhouse gases, have an unlimited low cost fuel supply, cause no chain reaction and produce little nuclear waste.

● It must overcome the obstacles of being commercially unproven, expensive to build, difficult to contain, producing a net loss of energy, and put the billions of dollars of research to good use.

(-) Did not mention initial costs of building a nuclear power plant  (-) Nuclear reactor could have been explain better by going more into detail (-) Didn't talk about current advancements in nuclear energy Grade:  88

(+) History and functionality of nuclear power was well explained at good pace with some humor which made it more engaging (+) Good examples of politics of nuclear power (+) Was able to answer question about enrichment methods and further explain why centrifuge is the most efficient  (+) Good visuals such as maps of reactors (+) Easy to follow pros and cons list of nuclear fusion and challenges of plasma containment

Pro Nuclear

Group was informative, did their homework when it came to knowing all the details of nuclear plants. It was interesting to see exactly how a nuclear plant operates. They did a great job of explaining the difference between U-235 to U-238 (what are they, need specifics!!!) and its purposes. A highlight of the presentation was the description of the centrifuge and the types of nuclear reactors. 

This group did a phenomenal job. Their facts were backed up with sources, and accurate data. they were very well versed in all the information. Did not have negative feedback. Really enjoyed this presentation. The only thing I would add is more layman's terms for the presentation. 

Grade:  86                   

The nuclear presentation was informative although quite lengthy. We enjoyed the history part of the presentation especially why the USA does not use nuclear energy anymore (incorrect, still 20% of all electrical production) Although the presenting group just sort of glossed over three mile island and didn't really mention Chernobyl or Fukishima. All three are an examples of the danger of nuclear energy that i wish they had more information on. Also I did like how they mentioned the future of nuclear energy with fusion. Overall it was an informative presentation.

Grade:  84        Group :

Pros: · Top 5 moments history slide was a good tool to demonstrate the growth of nuclear power · Map was a useful slide to show distribution of nuclear power plants within US. Good explanation for trends · Waste storage slides had good information that helped understand the aspects of storing radioactive waste produced from nuclear power · Good comparison of energy production vs coal power · Good discussion of nuclear fusion Grade:  89

Cons:                o Challenges                         o Pros & cons · Not a good explanation of how the nuclear power plant works · Did not know what graph represented · Did not explain what a moderator was · Presented table of different types of nuclear power plants but did not explain the differences between them · Inconsistent PowerPoint format. Distracting

Nuclear Power critique: Con: . confusion on one of the chart . too many words on each slide during Wonji which made it hard to follow up. Grade:  89

Pro: . good clear information . Rebekah knew what she was talking about her slides; spoke clear and confident . Materials and slides were well displayed . Interesting statistics . Clear understanding from Ramsy, provided good eye contact and knowledge of his part . interesting information from Joe . Covered all information well