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Disclaimer—This paper partially fulfills a writing requirement for first year (freshman) engineering students at the University
of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering. This paper is a student, not a professional, paper. This paper is based on publicly
available information and may not provide complete analyses of all relevant data. If this paper is used for any purpose other
than these authors’ partial fulfillment of a writing requirement for first year (freshman) engineering students at the University
of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering, the user does so at his or her own risk.
NUCLEAR ENERGY IS THE SOLUTION TO THE ENERGY CRISIS
Rachel West ([email protected])
OVERVIEW
Anyone who keeps up to date with current events should
know that the United States is experiencing a serious energy
crisis caused by the overuse of nonrenewable resources. The
two types of resources that can be used as energy sources are
renewable and nonrenewable. Most people and industries use
nonrenewable resources like fossil fuels to heat, cool, and
power their homes and businesses. However, there are two
main issues with burning these resources. First, as the name
states, nonrenewable resources cannot be regenerated; there
is only a specific amount that can be used, and the rate at
which they are consumed is astounding. The second issue is
that the burning of these fuels can lead to pollution which
opens the door to many environmental hazards.
Because this dependency on fossil fuels has such
harmful consequences like pollution and exhaustion of
resources, society has been trying to restrict its use of fossil
fuels and other nonrenewable resources by investing time and
money in the research of renewable energy. Renewable
energy is often referred to as clean energy because, unlike the
energy formed by the burning of fossil fuels, the creation of
renewable energy for the most part does not lead to pollution
nor does it have detrimental effects on the environment.
Society must turn to renewable energy to prevent the
deterioration of the environment and exhaustion of the next
generation’s resources.
The most effective way to end the energy crisis is to turn
to the energy of the future; nuclear. Nuclear energy is created
by harvesting the heat energy produced through fission, or the
splitting of a large atom’s nucleus within a nuclear reactor.
The most common type of reactor is called the pressurized
water reactor or PWR. These have been in use throughout the
US since the 1970s. The Beaver Valley Power Station in
Shippingport, PA is home to two of these highly specialized
systems.
Though nuclear energy releases little pollution, it can
still have harmful consequences. If proper safety precautions
are not taken, the byproducts of atom splitting can create
disastrous issues due to their power and radioactivity. But, as
long as the strict safety guidelines for nuclear reactors and
power plants are met, the development of nuclear energy can
drastically help reduce the need for nonrenewable resources
and limit the negative effects on the environment.
University of Pittsburgh, Swanson School of Engineering
11.01.2016.
THE ENERGY CRISIS
As previously stated, the current energy crisis is a result
of the overuse of nonrenewable resources. The terms
“nonrenewable” is used rather loosely here, because resources
like fossil fuels are technically renewable, however it takes
hundreds of thousands of years to replenish the supply [1].
Therefore, this can be viewed as a supply and demand crisis.
Currently, too many fossil fuels are being consumed to
replenish the supply in a timely manner, and therefore, instead
of exhausting all the available nonrenewable resources, the
population needs to resort to renewable resources like wind,
solar, and nuclear energy.
The shortage of nonrenewable resources is not a current
issue. According to the Globe correspondents Stephen
Ansolabehere and David Konisky, “We [The United States]
have coal, natural, gas, and oil reserves that could last
hundreds of years at modest costs,” [2]. However, this is
something we need to start worrying about now, because if
the next several hundred years go by, and the population is
still dependent on fossil fuels, who is to say what will happen?
The switch from nonrenewable resources to renewable ones
needs to happen as soon as possible to help preserve fossil
fuels for generations to come.
In addition to the potential shortage of these
nonrenewable resources, the main issue with their use is the
amount of pollution that is produced. Granted, pollution is
mainly associated with the burning of coal and oil; natural gas
burns relatively cleanly. Through a recent series of surveys
conducted as part of the Harvard University Center and the
MIT Energy Initiative, it was concluded that most Americans
“want energy to be less harmful to the environment… and to
be less expensive,” [2]. Unfortunately, with the current
sources available, we must choose between one or the other;
and when forced to choose, most Americans opted for cleaner
energy over cheaper energy [2]. Recently, advancements in
the extraction of natural gas have made it seem like the best
choice of fuel, but the processes can damage the quality of
local water and air [2]. Nuclear energy, along with other
renewable types, are the cleanest possible ways of providing
energy to people and businesses. However, these sources
come at no cheap expense. The cost of using renewable
opposed to nonrenewable energy is exponential, however it is
important to find a way to fund the use of these resources
Rachel West
sooner rather than later to prevent the depletion of Earth’s
fossil fuels.
is one that remains in the hand of the government. Today,
20% of America’s energy comes from nuclear power, but a
large portion of the remaining 80% still comes from
inefficient, pollution-causing sources, like coal. In order to
reduce our carbon footprint, we need to switch to cleaner,
more efficient energy. When visiting Plant Vogle in Georgia,
Energy Secretary, Steven Chu stated,
“If we want to be on top in producing the nuclear
technologies that will be used both here and around the world,
we’ll have to up our game—but this is a race America can
win. The resurgence of America’s nuclear industry starts here
in Georgia, where you just got approval for the first time in
three decades to build new reactors. The Obama
administration is committed to doing our part to help
jumpstart America’s nuclear industry,” [4]
This statement was made in February, 2012. Many
government officials are still on the fence about whether the
energy crisis is severe enough to invest in nuclear energy, or
not. Some deem it as too expensive, others deem it as unsafe.
Those like Representative James Clyburn believe nuclear is
the way of the future, yet still see a need to rely on fossil fuels.
In May, 2011 he stated, “We simply will not solve the issue
of climate change without a renewed commitment to nuclear
energy. I would say to my environmentalist friends, if you are
anti-carbon and anti-nuclear, then you’re pro-blackout” [4].
Despite some opposing opinions, today, the United States
houses 99 operating nuclear reactors that produce nearly 4.1
billion MWh (megawatt hours) and those numbers are
growing [5].
NUCLEAR ENERGY
The best viable solution to the problem posed by the
energy crisis is turning to nuclear energy. As previously
stated, the spitting of large atoms, also known as fission,
releases nuclear energy [3]. This process occurs in chambers
called nuclear reactors [3]. These reactors must be very
carefully designed, because although no pollutants. including
carbon dioxide, are emitted into the atmosphere, this process
produces radioactive nuclear waste which must be handled
and stored with the upmost caution [3]. Because these
reactors must meet a very strict set of criteria, their production
can prove very costly as well.
Benefits of Nuclear Energy
Since a byproduct of producing nuclear energy is
radioactive waste and the production of nuclear power plants
can cost billions, what makes nuclear energy any better than
other sources? Aside from the fact that no pollution is
released, nuclear energy is attractive because of the amount
of energy that can be produced. Figure 1 shows that natural
uranium, an element commonly used in nuclear fission, has
an energy density of nearly 6 million MJ/kg, whereas coal,
oil, and diesel have energy densities ranging from 32.5 MJ/kg
to 45.8 MJ/kg [3]. Also, one kilogram of uranium could
power a 100-watt light bulb for 182 years, whereas ethanol
and coal could only power the same light bulb for three to four
days [3]. The difference is remarkable.
PRESSURIZED WATER REACTORS
The main technology used in the production of nuclear
energy is pressurized water reactors. These reactors are made
up of a core, coolant, turbine, containment structure, and
cooling towers. The energy generation occurs in the core
through the process known as fission.
Fission of Heavy Atoms
The process used to release heat energy is known as
fission [3]. In order to split an atom through this process, it
must be struck with a high speed neutron [3]. This process
produces heat energy and radioactive fission products, or the
pieces of the split atom, and releases more neutrons to
continue the process [3].
The Pressurized Water Reactor pathway
Once fission occurs in the core, water is turned to steam
by the heat energy that was produced [5]. The steam is then
used to power a turbine which converts the energy into a
usable source that will go off to power homes and industries
[5]. The core is housed in what is known as the containment
structure; it is designed to hold all the radioactive material [5]
Figure 1 [3]
Energy Density of Different Sources
The benefits of nuclear energy seem to greatly outweigh
the cost. However, the decision on what powers the country
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Rachel West
Figure 2 shows a very simplified example of how pressurized
water reactors produce energy [5].
resources. The Beaver Valley Power station is a small
Nuclear plant that makes a huge difference in the western
Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio regions. If the country relied
more on nuclear plants like this one, that could very well solve
the energy crisis in the United States.
SOURCES
[1] Rinkesh. “What is the Energy Crisis?” Conserve Energy
Future.
05.25.2016.
Accessed
10.22.2016.
http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-andsolutions-to-the-global-energy-crisis.php.
[2] S. Ansolabehere. D. Konisky. “Energy: What Americans
Really Want.” The Boston Globe. 09.14.2014. Accessed
10.23.2016.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2014/09/13/energywhat-americans-reallywant/SdM914A5hoIK4rKP2rKn3O/story.html.
Figure 2 [5]
[3] “What is Nuclear Energy?” Whatisnuclear. 2016.
Accessed
10.24.2016.
https://whatisnuclear.com/articles/nucenergy.html.
Pressurized Water Reactor Process
The Beaver Valley Power Station
Located in Shippingport, PA, 34 miles outside of
Pittsburgh, the Beaver Valley Power Station is home to two
pressurized water reactors, Unit 1 and Unit 2 [6]. The site is
owned and operated by FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Co.
[6]. Unit 1 has been in operation since 1976, and Unit 2 since
1987 [6]. Today, both reactors together produce 1,815 MW,
enough electricity to power over 1 million homes each day
[7]. The plant follows all regulatory standards as to not
contaminate nature or release radiation into the environment
[7]. Also, the only waste discharged into the environment by
Beaver Valley is water vapor released from its cooling towers
[7]. Annually, the Beaver Valley Power Station prevents
more than 2,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases from being
emitted to the air [7]. The average cost of energy from this
plant is currently $.084/kWh [7]. Although it may be
expensive to run this 453-acre site, the creation of cheap
power and prevention of pollution greatly outweigh the cost
to build and maintain this site, as well as other nuclear sites.
[4] “Opinion Leader Statements on Nuclear Energy.” Nuclear
Energy Institute. 03.06.2012. Accessed 10.23.2016.
http://safetyfirst.nei.org/third-party-experts/opinion-leaderstatements-on-nuclear-energy/.
CONCLUSION
I would like to thank my friends and family for
motivating me to write this paper. Special thanks to my
friends Jordan and Spencer for proofreading my paper, Mike
for helping me choose a topic, and Dom for making me stay
focused. Thank you to my roommate for also helping to
keep me on track. Thank you to Tim Maddocks and the
writing center for clarifying my many questions.
[5] “What is a Nuclear Reactor?” Whatisnuclear. 2016.
Accessed
10.24.2016.
https://whatisnuclear.com/articles/nucreactor.html.
[6] “Beaver Valley Power Station.” United States Nuclear
Regulatory Commission. 04.01.2016. Accessed 10.24.2016.
http://www.nrc.gov/info-finder/reactors/bv2.html.
[7] “Beaver Valley.” FirstEnergy. 05.29.2015. Accessed
10.25.2016.
https://www.firstenergycorp.com/content/dam/corporate/fen
oc/files/Beaver_Valley_Plant_Facts_at_a_Glance.pdf.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
To conclude, it is beyond obvious that nuclear energy is
a clean, safe energy alternative compared to the burning of
nonrenewable resources like coal and oil. The development
of nuclear energy, when properly executed, eliminates tons on
pollutants and can lead to cleaner air. Also, nuclear energy is
renewable, and there is no worry about overusing the Earth’s
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