Nuclear energy - The Ideal Alternative Fuel

Today’s world runs mostly on fossil fuels i.e. fuels like petrol, diesel, natural gas, coal and kerosene. These fuels are non renewable which means they are limited. If these fossil fuels are used for a few more decades at the current rate, they would definitely exhaust. We would only have fuel left in the form of other types of fuels known as alternative fuels. Any fuels other than the conventional fossil fuels are called alternative fuels.

As mentioned earlier, today’s world is on the verge of finishing all the sources of fossil fuels present. This means that the machines working on these fuels would not have fuel one day and they would stop working. Without machines working, almost nothing can be done in the world – there would be no factories to manufacture products, no vehicles to transport. Also, fossil fuels produce a lot of carbon dioxide as a result of combustion, which is a known cause for global warming. Extracting fossil fuels results in lots of destruction of nature because of the amount of digging done.

If alternative fuels are used, then these problems could be easily tackled. It is preferable to have alternative forms of energy that are renewable. Some examples of alternative fuels include solar power, hydro power, wind power, wave power, bio fuels and nuclear fuel. Alternative fuels would help tackle the carbon dioxide problem very easily. All the alternative fuels do not emit carbon dioxide as a by-product as they all are not combustion reactions. Alternative fuels are currently plentiful and renewable which is why they are a better option than consuming all the oil reserves left on the planet.

Of these fuels, nuclear fuel is very effective to replace fossil fuels because currently uranium and thorium mines are plentiful. Moreover there is research going on for using nuclear fusion as energy source in future using renewable hydrogen. Nuclear fuel is gaining a new position in this world – a totally uncovered topic even a few decades ago. This fuel is currently from heavy elements which are unstable. Nuclear fuel is currently used only in nuclear reactors and ships, but the distant future would see it being used in several other fields and machines when it becomes handier to use. Using nuclear fuel to produce energy at present is a really exhilarating and costly job because the process of obtaining the nuclear fuel itself is costly.

The process obtaining of nuclear fuel is long. The whole process starts with the extraction of Uranium from mines. These mines operate in 20 countries although major production of the world (more than half) is from six countries.

But why is this extraction of Uranium-235 a costly process. This is because of the nature of Uranium found in the ores. It contains 99.3% Uranium-238. This ratio of the two isotopes cannot be used as nuclear fuel. Uranium-235 is vulnerable to chain reactions if placed in a super-critical state. Hence, Uranium-235 is used as nuclear fuel in a proportion with Uranium-238. While mining, a jet stream of oxygen enriched water is passed through the ore which brings out a liquid containing dissolved uranium oxide (U₃O₈). This is then separated from the water.

Uranium is required in gaseous form to be enriched. Hence it is converted into Uranium hexafluoride (UF₆) which is gaseous in nature. This is processed to get the required ratio of Uranium-235 and Uranium-238 and is converted into Uranium Dioxide powder (UO₂) and then into pellets which are the final nuclear fuel. As clearly visible, this is a cumbersome process.

This final fuel is used to emit energy under controlled conditions, which in turn would heat water inside the nuclear reactor. This water, under constant pressure gets converted into steam which finally is required for the functioning of a turbine. When the steam pushes the turbine, it generates electricity, which is the final output that is required for the society.

To put forward my view point, nuclear fuel at the present moment is not as ideal a fuel as solar power or hydropower. Even more than hydropower, solar power is an ideal fuel. The problem with nuclear fuel right now is mainly the cost and disposal of the nuclear waste that is produced. I am sure that there would be more developments in this field of work in the future. This is not only my saying but is of several others in the world. A survey conducted said that 62% of the public spread across 24 countries was against nuclear energy...

Today’s world’s nuclear fuel is only nuclear fission as conditions for controlling nuclear fusion have not yet been achieved although the techniques have been discovered. If nuclear fusion would be used for producing all the power in the future world, then I am totally for nuclear fuel being the ideal fuel. This is because nuclear fusion at least diminishes the disposal of nuclear waste which is very hazardous in today’s world.

Nuclear fuel is a big environmental concern due to the nuclear waste produced by the nuclear fission in the nuclear reactors. This nuclear waste is very harmful for the environment and the habitat of several species of animals which includes humans when exposed to this nuclear fuel and waste. This nuclear waste is produced at different stages of making nuclear fuel and energy and in different ways. Apart from waste rocks produced during mining, spent nuclear fuel in the reactors, it also releases small amounts of radioactive materials into the atmosphere. These all add up to creating hazard for life especially humans.

Economically, nuclear power is creating both a positive and a negative impact. Negatively, creating nuclear energy requires a lot of funds for example obtaining 1kg of final Uranium reactor fuel cost US$2360 in June 2013. This explains the economical impact. This is one of the reasons several poor countries do not start their own nuclear reactors. Also, nuclear reactors are always prone to disasters such as Chernobyl and Fukusima Daichi. The cost of producing nuclear energy is high compared to other alternative fuels which are one-time investments. This is the last disadvantage of nuclear fuel. Similarly, nuclear fuel still has ability to produce a lot of energy. It could be one of the main sources of energy in the future. Huge development could be possible due to the huge amounts of energy produced by nuclear reactors. This would also boost the economy of countries as individuals for their benefit.

I would conclude with my view point same as I mentioned before. Nuclear fuel does not have the potential to become an ideal fuel in the next few years but definitely would have the potential a few decades from now.

-Suhas

4/2/14