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Nuclear Chemistry. Nuclear. What do you think about when you hear the word nuclear?. Nuclear. What are some problems with nuclear power? Can you think of any problems that may arise with using nuclear power? Do you have any solutions to these problems?. Radiation. Types of Radiation
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Nuclear • What do you think about when you hear the word nuclear?
Nuclear • What are some problems with nuclear power? Can you think of any problems that may arise with using nuclear power? Do you have any solutions to these problems?
Radiation • Types of Radiation • Radioactivity - Atoms can change spontaneously because they have unstable nuclei • Electromagnetic radiation - energy emitted during radioactive decay • ex. Visible light, microwaves, radio waves, and x-rays • Properties of EM radiation • has no mass • travels at the speed of light • movement does not depend on a medium, (can travel through a vacuum) • emitted by atoms as they decay or become energized (light bulb) • moves in bundles called photons (characteristic frequency) • the higher the frequency, the higher the energy
Radiation • Ionization radiation - highest energy and greatest potential for harm (x-rays, gamma rays, nuclear decay), energy is transferred to the electrons, so electrons get ejected from molecules causing the molecule to become an ion • Nonionizing radiation - lower energy (uv, visible, and radio waves) causes excitation, molecules vibrate or electrons move to higher energy levels, excessive exposure can be harmful
Radiation • "all radiation is harmful and should be avoided" discuss this statement with your partner
Nuclear Power • The Benefits and Risks of Nuclear Power • Every new form of technology has a certain risk associated with it • People continue to use the technology to reap the benefits as long as they outweigh the risks • ex. Fire, Dams, Boats, driving, health care, and honestly almost everything was once believed to be too dangerous to use, however, over time people started to realize the benefits
Benefits • Healthcare - tracers are used to trace abnormalities in body functions, to located damaged areas, and in therapy • Irradiators - used to kill harmful cells in the body, as well as in sterilizing food, and medical equipment
Risks • Radiation Exposure - people are exposed to radiation on a daily bases from background radiation as well as: • Cosmic Rays - from outer space • Radioisotopes - from rocks and minerals in the earth's crust, as well as in the atmosphere (radon decays naturally in the ground and produces radon) • Nuclear Weapon Testing - depending on where you live • Traveling in Airplanes - closer to cosmic rays • Medical equipment - mostly X rays but other sources as well • Radioisotopes - from generating nuclear power and other nuclear technologies • The average person receives more than 170 mrem of radiation per year, some receive up to 5 rem per year but have an increased chance of getting cancer by 1-3%
Storage • Imagine that you are living the way that you do now, but you can't through away any of your garbage. What would you do? What would happen to your lifestyle?
Dry Cast Storage Pad
NUCLEAR POWER TIMELINE • 1946 Atomic Energy Act passed creating AEC • 1957 Price Anderson Act passed • 1960-80 Many US nuclear plants constructed • 1970s: increasing anti-nuclear activism • : • Three Mile Island accident • China syndrome • 1986: Chernobyl
Allen S KingLocation: MNOperator: Xcel EnergyConfiguration: 1 X 598 MWOperation: 1968Fuel: coalQuick facts: The Xcel Energy power plant nesting project began in 1989, when the Allen S King plant became the first power plant in the United States to provide a home for nesting peregrine falcons.
GlobalWarming: Hypothesized Relationship FUTURE EFFECTS CO2 EMISSIONS GLOBAL WARMING Is the climate changing? Will the costs of global warming exceed the benefits? If so, are CO2 the principal cause? Will the benefits of stopping or slowing global warming exceed the costs?
What does the future hold for coal-fired and nuclear power? Will we continue to rely on either or both for base load electricity? Should we? Are the environmental costs of these technologies acceptable? Should we promote these technologies? Phase them out? Let the market decide?
Nuclear Discovery • W.K. Roentgen - used cathod ray tubes to study fluorescence (glow in the dark), and discovered x-ray • Henri Becquerel - studied fluorescence in minerals using x-rays. Randomly tested uranium and discovered its penetrating power, and radioactivity had been discovered • Pierre and Marie Curie - suggested that radioactivity might be a property of heavy elements