Nuclear Fusion Disadvantages

Introduction: With the constant rise for global energy, there is a huge demand for environmentally clean and cheap energy sources. Now, for many years power generated by nuclear power plants has been a reliable source for energy but the current amount of uranium, which is the fuel will satisfy the energy requirements for the next 200 years. Also, the nuclear reactors are not very efficient as not all of the uranium mined is being used to generate power. In this essay, I will discuss an alternate method of producing nuclear energy, its impact on the environment and the benefits and disadvantages that come with this new method.
There are 2 known types of nuclear reactions, one of them is nuclear fusion which can provide an inexhaustible source …show more content…
It takes place at such high temperatures that the gas produced turns into plasma. Usually, fusion is not feasible because of the electrostatic repulsion between 2 nuclei but if circumstances can be achieved where the 2 hydrogen isotopes, deuterium and tritium are heated to such an extent that they can overcome electrostatic repulsion, the 2 nuclei can fuse to release a tremendous amount of energy. This is currently being achieved by the Tokamak reactors. Nuclear fusion doesn’t risk running out of deuterium and tritium because deuterium is found mainly in sea water and tritium can easily be obtained by bombarding lithium-7 with high energy neutrons. (Nuclear fusion, para. 3 …show more content…
The fusion core is surrounded with a blanket of fertile materials, materials who are not fissionable by themselves, but by thermal neutrons (0.025 eV) can become fissile materials, for example: uranium. The purpose of the blanket of uranium is to decelerate the neutron from the fusion reactor and thus begin the fission process with the fertile materials. Also, collision with the fertile materials, which is basically nuclear fission will also release 4-5 other neutrons which will then feed the fission reactor. (Barrett, Hardie, 6,