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29 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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What is nuclear energy?
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Energy of the Atomic Nucleus.
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What is fission?
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Splitting of atomic nuclei.
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What is fusion?
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combining or fusing of atomic nuclei.
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What is an isotope?
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Atoms of an element that have the same atomic number, but different atomic mass.
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What is a radioisotope?
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Form of chemical element that spontaniously undergoes radioactive decay.
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What are the three isotopes of uranium?
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U-238, U-235, U-234
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Which is used in nuclear power plants and how is it processed in order to be used as fuel?
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U-235 is needed, so fuel is enriched to 4% U-235.
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What is radiation?
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Energy given off by radioactive decay.
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Describe the three major types of radiation.
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Natural: cosmic, Natural: people, Medical
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What is radioactive decay? half-life?
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radioisotope changes from one isotope to another emitting radiation. Time required for half th amount of a substance to disapear.
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What are the units used to measure radiation and dosage?
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Sieverts and revs
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What is background radiation and how much are people exposed to annually?
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naturally occurring in environment
2 mSv/year |
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What are some of the sources and amounts of anthropogenic radiation exposure?
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· X-rays, medical tests, weapons testing, power plants
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What are the environmental and human health effects of radiation?
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lung cancer, leukemia, thyroid cancer
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How do nuclear power plants work?
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Reactor gives off energy that boils water. Steam turns turbine, which in ture turns a generator.
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What is a burner reactor?
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It is a very inefficiant nuclear reactor that produces a lot of waste.
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What is a breeder reactor?
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designed to produce new nuclear fuel while still producing energy.
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How is it different from a burner reactor?
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It is more efficiant
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What is a meltdown?
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nuclear fuel overheats, melts core and vessel
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What happened at Three Mile Island?
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· pump malfunction compounded by human error
,partial meltdown, small release of radioactivity (1 mSv) |
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What happened at Chernobyl?
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x
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What is the difference between high-level and low-level nuclear waste?
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High is fuel waste, low is tools used with high.
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How are these types of nuclear waste currently handled?
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Geological disposal or underwater storage.
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What are the issues with storage of waste at the Sharon Harris Plant?
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x
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What is the nuclear fuel cycle?
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releases could occur at any point
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What are some of the problems associated with the nuclear fuel cycle?
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x
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What are the advantages of nuclear energy?
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Cleaner than that of combustion.
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What are the disadvantages of nuclear energy?
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Potentionally harmful if errors are made.
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What is the future of nuclear power in the United States?
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Increased use, development of new nuclear technologies (breeder reactor)
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