Energy from Thorium
Description
Foreword
The use of fossil fuels in power generation, among others, releases a lot of CO2 into the atmosphere, resulting in an increase in the greenhouse effect of the atmosphere and a corresponding increase in the temperature of our planet. To counter this effect, methods are being sought to produce energy without the by-product CO2. Solar energy, wind energy and hydropower are examples of this but CO2-free electricity can also be generated using a nuclear reactor.
In current nuclear reactors, nuclei of the uranium isotope U235 are split by neutrons and because the nuclei of the regret products together weigh less than the U235 nucleus, the mass difference is converted into heat according to E=mc2. Neutrons are also released, which in turn can split nuclei.
For a controlled reaction, the excess neutrons must be captured away, absorbed. The problem with this method is that the fuel rods in the reactor contain not only U235 but also U238. The core of U238 does not fission but captures a neutron and transforms to the highly toxic and highly radioactive Plutonium. Together with some other elements, this is what we now call the dangerous long-lived radioactive waste.
But the reactor itself can also be dangerous. The reactor still needs to be cooled for a long time even if nuclear fission has long since stopped. If the cooling fails (Chernobyl and Fukushima), hydrogen can be produced near the fuel rods as they break down, which, together with oxygen, forms boiling gas and explodes. The fuel rods can also melt (meltdown), releasing a lot of radioactivity. If everything goes normally with this reactor type, a quarter of the fuel rods would still have to be replaced each year, so that one rod would remain in the reactor core for four years. Still, only 1% of the available U235 will have been used.
The rest will be explained to you in the meeting.
Speaker(s)
Coen Groen Msc. Physics
Location
Gorechthuis, Hortuslaan1, 9751 BE in Haren
Organiser
Region North
Name and contact details for information
Ton Wester (GIV)
Apply via
Ton Wester
twester@ziggo.nl