What is the difference between nuclear power plants and fossil fuel plants?
What can nuclear electricity be used for?
How safe is nuclear electricity?
How is the nuclear electricity industry regulated?
How big a factor is cost in developing and operating nuclear power projects?
What improvements have been made in reactor design?
What kind of growth is projected for the industry?
What is the difference between nuclear power plants and fossil fuel plants?
All power plants - including nuclear - work pretty much alike. Basically, the fuel (whether that be coal, gas or uranium) heats water and turns it into steam. The steam turns the propeller-like blades of a giant turbine. That turbine drives the shaft of a huge generator. Inside the generator, coils of wire and magnetic fields interact - and electricity is produced.
The biggest difference is that nuclear power plants don't burn fossil fuels - or anything else. Instead, they split uranium atoms. That means they don't create acid rain, soot, urban smog or carbon dioxide (the principal greenhouse gas). Nuclear power plants avoid more than 2 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually.
What can nuclear electricity be used for?
Nuclear utilities rely on their nuclear plants as the backbone of their electricity generation systems. These plants operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year with only periodic shutdowns for maintenance and refuelling. The nuclear electricity they generate can be used to power anything in a modern economy that requires electricity.
How safe is nuclear electricity?
Nuclear generation of electricity has an excellent safety record. In the nuclear industry, safety is the first thing - and the last thing - on everybody's mind. In the design of nuclear power plants, an important objective can be described as 'defence in depth'. In other words, there are multiple levels of protection to ensure safety. If any system or procedure fails, there is another that provides backup. Typically, a fully automatic (passive) system is provided to backup any manual system or manually-controlled activity. Whenever possible, components of a nuclear facility are designed to be 'failsafe', so that if they should fail, they will do so in such a way that safety is not compromised. Systems are installed to monitor virtually every aspect of a nuclear power plant's operation. In addition, a facility is designed so that, in the unlikely event of all systems failing, the release of contamination will be limited. This critical characteristic is standard for any reactor licensed in the western world. (See What improvements have been made in reactor design?)
A strong safety culture is the foundation of operations at every nuclear plant. Managers and workers take safety very seriously. The training and certification of reactor operators are regulated by national regulators. Minimum training periods for operators are specified and, like airline pilots, operators are required to demonstrate their competence on a simulator.
Although many precautions are taken to reduce the risk of a significant accident at a nuclear power plant, it is impossible to eliminate the risk completely. Consequently, every plant has developed emergency procedures, approved by the local regulatory authority, to be employed in the event of an accident. These procedures are reviewed frequently and tested regularly.
How is the nuclear electricity industry regulated?
The nuclear industry is one of the most highly regulated industries in the world with licensing requirements for construction, operation and decommissioning of all operations involved in the nuclear fuel cycle. In Canada, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) is the national regulatory body. In the United States, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) oversees all nuclear operations including the review of power plant licence applications.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is an independent intergovernmental, science and technology-based organization, in the United Nations family. According to its mission statement, the IAEA serves as the global focal point for nuclear co-operation. In the context of social and economic goals, the IAEA assists its member states in planning for and using nuclear science and technology for various peaceful purposes including the generation of electricity. It facilitates the transfer of such technology and knowledge in a sustainable manner to developing member states, develops nuclear safety standards and, based on these standards, promotes the achievement and maintenance of high levels of safety in applications of nuclear energy, as well as the protection of human health and the environment against ionizing radiation. The IAEA also verifies through its inspection system that member states comply with their commitments under the Non-Proliferation Treaty and other non-proliferation agreements, to use nuclear material and facilities only for peaceful purposes.
How big a factor is cost in developing and operating nuclear power projects?
Due to the transition to competitive electricity markets, nuclear utilities are reassessing the economic value of their reactors. Where governments formerly subsidized some of the high costs of building and operating reactors, that burden is now shifting to investor-owned utilities. Utilities have responded by reviewing their reactor operations in detail. Less productive reactors are being sold or prematurely shut down. Owners of more productive reactors are pursuing capacity upgrades and licence extensions.
In 2007, US nuclear power plants achieved a record low average electricity production cost of 1.68 cents per kilowatt hour. For a comparison of nuclear's cost to those of other fuels, please see the Fuel Comparisons section. For more information on nuclear energy, please go to the Nuclear Energy Institute www.nei.org.
By comparison with coal, oil and gas consumed in generating electricity, the fuel cost in nuclear power is relatively minor compared to total nuclear costs. This remains true even when conversion, enrichment and fuel fabrication costs are added to that of uranium, together with an appropriate allowance for the cost of spent fuel management and final waste disposal. Even though uranium prices have increased sharply over the past several years, the impact on overall nuclear electricity generation costs are relatively small.
What improvements have been made in reactor design?
Worldwide, increased funding for research and development of new reactor designs reflects renewed interest in nuclear energy. The next generation of reactors is based on today's plants - only easier and safer to operate. They'll rely more on natural forces - like gravity and stored water - instead of pipes and valves. They'll be standardized in design, faster and less expensive to build in part because regulatory approval for construction and operation will be sought before construction begins.
Recently, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission certified the design of the Westinghouse AP-1000, a 1,000 megawatt light water reactor. There are also a number of new reactors under development. These include new light water reactor designs such as the European pressurized water reactor (PWR), which is now under construction in Finland and France. Russia is developing two advanced PWRs. In Canada, the new Advanced Candu Reactor-1000 (ACR-1000), a heavy water reactor, is in the development phase and in South Africa, a pebble bed modular reactor design incorporates advanced safety systems and modular construction which will allow utilities to add capacity as demand grows. The world's first advanced-design nuclear plant is already operating successfully in Japan. For an up-to-date list of reactors being marketed, go to the World Nuclear Association.
What kind of growth is projected for the industry?
An ever-increasing demand for a sustainable, environmentally-safe source of electricity is paving the way for nuclear growth. Improved reactor designs and operations, nuclear's lack of greenhouse emissions and the depletion of fossil fuels all make nuclear an essential component of a diverse energy mix for the future.
Nuclear power capacity worldwide is increasing steadily but not dramatically, with about 30 reactors under construction in 12 countries. Most of the reactors on order or planned are in the Asian region. In addition, significant capacity is being created by upgrading the performance of existing plants. This is a highly cost-effective way of bringing on new capacity. Plant life extensions are decreasing the need for new capacity. Most nuclear power plants originally had a nominal design lifetime of up to 40 years, but engineering assessments of many plants over the last decade have established that many can operate longer. In the US nearly 50 reactors have been granted licence renewals which extend their operating lives from the original 40 out to 60 years, and operators of most others are expected to apply for similar extensions. For an up-to-date list of reactors under construction, go to the World Nuclear Association.