Will Nuclear Energy Ever Run Out?

Identification

Nuclear power is generated inside a facility called a nuclear reactor. The plant's source of power is the heat produced by a controlled nuclear fission chain reaction, of either uranium or plutonium. This reaction involves an element such as uranium or plutonium being struck by a neutron and splitting apart. The result of the fission of these large and unstable atoms is the creation of new, smaller atoms, radiation, and more neutrons. Those neutrons then speed out and strike other uranium or plutonium atoms, creating a chain reaction. The chain reaction is controlled by neutron moderators, which vary in type depending on the design of the reactor. These can be anything from graphite rods to simple water.

Once the heat has been released, a nuclear reactor produces electricity in exactly the same manner as any other thermal-based power plant. The heat converts water into steam, and the steam is used to turn the blades of a turbine, which in turn runs the generator. In this way, heat energy is converted to mechanical energy, and then into electricity.

Nuclear energy has been marketed in recent times as an environmentally sound, renewable source of energy. Nuclear energy is in no way renewable. It is reliant upon a finite source of fuel that can be exhausted. The uranium (and sometimes plutonium) used in nuclear power is a natural resource in the same way that oil, coal and natural gas are. So, just like oil, if nuclear fission continues to be used, one day the world's fuel supplies will be exhausted.

There is a special type of reactor design called a breeder reactor. This design can create or refine radioactive elements as a part of its functioning. There are breeder designs that, once operating, can refine uranium, turning even natural uranium into fuel-grade uranium that can be used by other standard reactors. Some breeder designs create plutonium as a byproduct, which can be used for either power generation or in nuclear weapons. In this very limited way, nuclear energy could be called "partly renewable," since breeder reactors partially recycle their fuel. However, even if all nuclear power plants were breeder designs, they would still eventually run out of fuel. This is because to even create plutonium in the first place, uranium must be consumed. When all the uranium is gone, nuclear fission reactors will be out of fuel.

Nuclear energy is somewhat environmentally friendly in that it has no greenhouse gas emissions. The expansion of nuclear power could help with controlling global warming. However, it also produces incredibly toxic, radioactive waste that must be disposed of, and nuclear waste disposal remains a thorny issue.

While nuclear energy is absolutely nonrenewable, and could one day exhaust the world's supply of nuclear fuel, the conceivable needs of a country like the United States for fissile materials (uranium for the most part) can easily be met by domestic sources. So, while not renewable, the United States is energy independent in nuclear terms. The U.S. is even an exporter of nuclear fuel.