Projeto de pesquisa

The benefits of nuclear energy

By Berol Robinson

There are many benefits of nuclear energy :

1. It's environmentally clean - no emissions of greenhouse gases CO2 or other nasty gases. CO2 - carbon dioxide - is produced when we burn any fossil fuel; it is one of the main gases contributing to the greenhouse effect and leading to atmospheric warming. Polar caps and glaciers may melt and the sea level may rise drowning seacoasts and port cities. Coal and oil (petrol) have sulfur impurities and when they are burned sulfur dioxide goes up the stack - it's responsible for acid rain. When any fossil fuel (coal, oil or natural gas) is burned, nitrogen oxides are also produced - they cause smog and city pollution. Nuclear fuel is pure (no sulfur), it is not in contact with the air
(no nitrogen), and it produces no smoke or exhaust: everything is confined in the fuel element.

2. Nuclear energy is cheap. Even when oil and gas prices are low, nuclear electric energy is competitive with fossil fuel. In 1973, 1987 and 2000 we had oil crises with the price doubling and more in a few days or a few weeks.
Gasoline and fuel oil (and eventually electricity) had to follow the price rise. This goes with:

3. Nuclear energy prices are stable. A country (or an electric company) can buy years of supply of uranium when the price is low; it doesn't take up much space and can be easily stored until needed. Most countries (or utilities) don't have space to store more than 3 or 6 months supply of fossil fuels.

4. Uranium is plentiful - there's enough to last most of a century if we use just the U-235 (0.7%). When we develop Fast Neutron Reactors, we will convert the U-238 (99.3%) to plutonium which is also a nuclear fuel; that means the uranium will last 50 times longer or more. Natural gas and oil reserves are estimated in decades; there's lots of coal, but it's nasty (see 1 above).

5. Nuclear energy is safe. All human activities are risky,