How is Nuclear Energy Converted into Electricity. Nuclear
power plants, as well as
plants that burn coal, natural gas and
oil, they boil water into
steam that turns turbines to produce electricity. The difference between these plans is that nuclear
power plants do not burn
anything to produce electricity.
The nuclear plants produce
electricity through a process called fission of uranium fuel that
consist of solid ceramic pellets.
Nuclear power plants acquire the heat needed through a physical
process to produce steam. This physical
process called fission that involve the
splitting of uranium atoms in a nuclear
reactor. The uranium fuel is
packaged into long, vertical tubes and
consists of small, hard ceramic pellets. Bundles of this uranium fuel are inserted into a nuclear reactor.
How is the nuclear energy converted
into the electricity for your home
 |
| edfenergy.com |
The nuclear energy in uranium atoms are converted into electrical energy in a nuclear
power station, and then it can be used in homes and businesses.
- The reactor vessel is tough steel capsule and sealed metal cylinders that contain pellets of uranium oxide. This is the house of the fuel rods. When a neutrally charged subatomic particle called neutron hits a uranium atom, then the atom splits and releasing two or three more neutrons. The nuclear energy that binds the atom together is converted into heat energy through this process.The assembly of fuels are arranged in such a way so that when atoms in the fuel split, the released neutrons are likely to hit other atoms and then make them split as well. A large quantities of heat is produced throuh this chain reaction.The chain reaction heats the reactor vessel to around 300°C, and the water have to flow through the reactor vessel.
- The pressurizer. To keep power station work the flow water needs to stay in liquid form. The pressuriser create water pressure to around 155 times atmospheric pressure to aviod water boil.
- The reactor coolant pump. The hot pressurised water from the reactor vessel is circulated by the reactor coolant pump to the steam generator.
- The steam generator. Inside the steam generator, the water flows through thousands of looped pipes before it is circulating back to the reactor vessel. Another stream of water flows through the steam generator, around the outside pipes. The water is under much less pressure, so the heat from the pipes boils this water into steam. Then this steam passes through a series of turbines.
- Turbines. The steam causing turbines to spin, so the process that converting the heat energy produced in the reactor into mechanical energy are happened. A turbines is connected to a generator by a shaft, so when the turbines spin, the generator also spin.An electromagnetic field is used by the generator to convert this rotation or mechanical energy into electrical energy. The electrical energy from the generator is converted to a high voltage by the transformer.
- The power lines. Through the power lines, the national grid uses high voltages to transmit electricity efficiently to the consumer homes and businesses that need it.
- The consumer home and business. The consumer uses transformers to reduce the voltage back down to a level needed.
- The steam that passing through the turbines comes into contact with pipes with full of cold water pumped in from the sea or other water source. The steam is cooled by the cold pipes so the steam will condense back into water. Again, It is piped back to the steam generator, where it can be heated up, turn into steam, and keep the turbines turning to produce electricity.
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