AboutOsman Kemal Kadiroglu Expertise Nuclear Engineering, Nuclear Engineering Education, Nuclear Reactors, Pebble Bed Modular Reactors, Engineering Education
Experience Has been teaching Nuclear Engineering for more than 20 years and been in this field for more than 30 years
Organizations belong to American Nuclear Society
Society of Nucelar Engineers of Turkey
Emeritus Prof. Nuclear Engineering Department, Hacettepe University Ankara Turkey
Extra-ordinary Prof. Nuclear Engineering Department, North-West Uni. Potchefstroom South Africa
Education/Credentials (Mak. Y. Müh.) MS in Mech. Eng. Istanbul Technical University '68
MS in Nuclear Eng. MIT'72
Sc.D. in Nuclear Eng. MIT'76
Question Can you give me at least 3 pros and cons on Nuclear Power and coal burning power?
Answer Hi Josie,
It looks like I am helping your class for a homework. I sent this answer to Amy Cawthorn, whom I suspect is one of your classmates, and you may use it too. Or better work with your friend...
Hi,
Since I do not know how much you know about nuclear power or electricity production I have difficulty in interpreting what you mean by Advanced pros and cons, Nevertheless, I will try my best.
Being a nuclear engineer, I do not see any cons for nuclear power. Therefore I will tell you the pros of nuclear power.
Nuclear power is one of the cheapest ways of producing electric power. The overall generation cost ($/kWh) is less then all other electricity generation technologies. Please do not compare nuclear power with hydraulic power. One can build a nuclear reactor to any place they want but a coal fired plant must be close to coal mines and one can only build a dam to a very specific place at a river basin. The cost of generation includes capital cost (very large for nuclear powerr plants and dams) including the interest paid for the load, operaton and maintance cost (similar for fossile fired plant and a nuclear power plant) and the fuel cost including the decommission (nuclear has the cheapest fuel where as fossile fueled plants has the largest). Nuclear power plants use less land then other alternatives. (Solar or wind need many times more land to generate similar power)
The exhaust gases from fossile fired plants contain CO2 and there is no way to get rid of them. This gas is contributing to the temperature increase of the atmosphere. Coal has some degree of sulphur and when burned SO2 is created. This gas causes acit rains. Some of the sulphor can be scrubed from the coal while or after the combustion but it increses the cost of electricity.
If the burners operate at high temperatures, like in gas turbines and diesel engines, nitrogen oxides are generated. This gas is one of the contributers of the ozone depletion in the atmosphere.
Ash from a fossile fired plant accumulates around the power plant as ash mountains and it contains toxic elements like cadmium and radioactive elements like uranium and thorium.
Nuclear power generates very little amount of highly radioactive waste. The toxicidity of this waste dimishes with time. After a very long time teh activity of the nuclear waste will be same as earths surface. (This time is very very long)
Nuclear power gives energy independence to a nation. Considering the strings attached to gas and petroleum sales in the international markets, nations that do not dependent of foreign energy resources have free hand in diplomacy.
If you need more advance knowledge I recommend that you read books related to the economics and the envirnomental effects of nuclear power.
