Nuclear in language means the center or the core. In biology, the word nuclear is synonymous with the nucleus of a cell. Whereas in physics and chemistry, nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry are branches of science that study the atomic nucleus.
And in physics the word nuclear is always synonymous with the nucleus of an atom. The atomic nucleus consists of many nuclear particles. There are two main particles in the nucleus of an atom: neutrons and protons. Neutrons have a neutral charge while protons have a positive charge.
Nuclear energy is energy that is absorbed or released when nuclear reactions or radioactive decay occur. If energy is absorbed in a reaction, the reaction is called an endothermic reaction. On the other hand, if energy is released in a reaction, the reaction is called an exothermic reaction.
Energy is used or released due to the difference in nuclear bond energy between the incoming and released products in nuclear transmutation.
Nuclear transmutation is the conversion of a chemical element or isotope into another chemical element or isotope. Isotopes are two or more chemical elements that have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons.
Nuclear
Transmutation Exothermic nuclear transmutation is divided into two groups: fission reactions and fusion reactions.
A fission reaction is a reaction that splits the nucleus of an atom, the heavier chemical elements release radioactive particles that decay into lighter chemical elements and release a certain amount of energy.
An example is a nuclear reactor that breaks down uranium and plutonium nuclei into lighter nuclei. The resulting energy is used to generate electricity in the nuclear reactor.
A fusion reaction is the opposite of a fission reaction: it is a reaction that combines several light atomic nuclei to form a heavier chemical element. Like fission reactions, fusion reactions produce a certain amount of energy.
An example of a fusion reaction is the formation of helium in the sun. The lighter hydrogen gas atoms collide with each other and produce the heavier helium atoms.
Nuclear
Reactor A nuclear reactor is a device for initiating and controlling a continuous nuclear chain reaction. The most common use of nuclear reactors is to generate electricity and as a power source for large ships.
The method commonly used in nuclear reactors is to generate steam turbine power through heat energy generated from nuclear reactions.
Types of Nuclear Reactor
The following are some common groupings in determining the type of reactor.
Types of Reactors Based on Types of Core Reactions
Based on the type of core reactions reactors are divided into three types: fission reactors, fusion reactors, and radioactive decay reactors.
Type of Reactor Based on Material Moderator
Moderator is a medium used to reduce the speed of neutrons so that they can become hot neutrons capable of sustaining nuclear chain reactions.
Based on the moderator material, nuclear reactors are divided into four types: graphite-moderated reactors, water-moderated reactors (including light water and heavy water), light compound moderated reactors (such as LiF2, BeF2 and BeO) and organic compound moderated reactors (such as biphenyl and terphenyl). .
Reactor Type Based on Coolant Type Coolant
is a fluid that flows through a device to prevent overheating, transfer the heat generated by the tool to another device or dissipate heat.
Based on the cooling material, nuclear reactors are divided into five types: Pressurized water reactor (PWR, using pressurized water as coolant), Boiling water reactor (BWR, using water vapor as coolant), Liquid metal cooled reactor (using liquid metal as coolant), Gas cooled reactors (using gas as coolant), and Molten Salt Reactors (using molten salt as coolant).