6.6 - Nuclear Power

1960 + 56 years = 2016

A 2.5 gram sample of an isotope of Strontium-90 was formed in a 1960 explosion of an atomic bomb at Johnson Island in the Pacific Test Site. The half-life of Strontium-90 is 28 years. In what year did only 0.625 grams of this Strontium-90 remain?

30 years

A sample of radioactive waste has a half-life of 10 years and an activity level of 2 curies. After how many years will the activity level of this sample be 0.25 curie?

From 1 → 1/16, there must be 4 half lives 200 mil years / 4 half lives = 50 million years

After 200 million years, only 1/16 of the original amount of a particular radioactive waste will remain. The half-life of this radioactive waste is how many million years?

90 yrs / 30 years = 3 35 mg x (½)³ = 4.375 mg

An isotope of Cesium-137 has a half-life of 30 years. If 35.0 mg of Cesium-137 disintegrates over a period of 90 years, how many mg of Cesium-137 would remain?

thermal pollution

Compared to a coal-fired power plant that produces the same amount of energy, a nuclear power plant generates more what?

4 half lives x 22 min = 88 min

If the half-life of Francium-233 is 22 minutes, how much time must elapse in order for 60 grams of a 64 gram sample to undergo decay? In other words, after how many minutes will you only have 4 grams of the original isotope remaining?

on site

In contrast to low-level radioactive waste, most high-level radioactive waste is currently stored where?

17145 years / 5715 years = 3 half lives 20 g x (½)³ = 2.5 grams

The half-life of carbon-14 is 5715 years. If an animal bone contains 20 grams of carbon-14 when the animal dies, how many grams of carbon-14 will be left in 17145 years?

The temperature of the released water causes a decrease in the amount of dissolved oxygen in the reservoir

The water used in a nuclear power plant is often released back into a reservoir. What effects could this released water have on the reservoir?

release of thermal pollution and hazardous solid waste

What environmental problems are most often associated with nuclear power?

Nuclear plants do NOT produce greenhouse gasses such as CO2

What gas is released from the exhaust of a nuclear power plant?

Financial consts of building or decommissioning a nuclear power station are very large, and hazardous waste is produced that remains radioactive for thousands of years.

What is a disadvantage of using nuclear energy as a source of electricity?

there is no CO2 emitted from the nuclear reaction

What is considered an advantage of using nuclear power to generate electricity?

Nuclear fission releases a large amount of heat, which is used to generate steam, which powers a turbine and generates electricity

What is nuclear fission

disposal of radioactive waste

What is the primary environmental problem associated with the use of nuclear power to generate electricity?

Uranium-235

What is used as a fuel source for electricity generation in a nuclear power station?

It does NOT produce air pollutants, but it does release thermal pollution and hazrdous solid waste

What pollution does nuclear power release?

fission in radioactive fuel

What process would provide the energy used to generate electricity at a power plant?

Uranium-235

What type of uranium does Nuclear fission use

control rods in the reactor core

Where in the nuclear power plant did the accidents at Three Mile Island and Chernobyl occurr?