Tidal Power

As time moves on, more and more power is consumed throughout the world.  Scientists are constantly looking for alternative power sources.  They are looking to sources of power that can last forever, known as renewable energy sources.

One up-and-coming renewable power source is known as tidal power.  Tidal power is produced by the surge of the ocean during the rising and falling of tides.

Tidal power is still in its' developing stages, there are very few commercial tidal power sources throughout the world.  There is a lot of politics involved with tidal energy.  First, the impact on the environment is not quite known.  The turbines that are placed in the water can affect the tide there, and therefore harm the environment.  Second, there are legal concerns with who owns the underwater land where turbines are placed to harness the tidal energy.

There are three ways to harness tidal energy: tidal streams, barrages, and tidal lagoons.  Tidal streams use a turbine placed in a fast moving body of water, which are used to turn a generator, generating power(Society, 2012).

Barrages use a dam to build up a body of water.  Once the body of water builds up, water can run over the top of the dam, which turns the turbines that are placed there.  This turns a generator, and generates power.  The downfall of barrages is that they are expensive, and significantly impact the environment around the dam(Society, 2012).

http://www.alternative-energy-tutorials.com/images/stories/tidal/alt93.gif

This video gives a brief tutorial as to how barrages are used to generate tidal energy.

Finally, tidal lagoons use a man-made pool of water to generate energy.  Tidal lagoons function much like a barrage, but without harming the environment.  The downfall of tidal lagoons is how expensive it is initially, and the low power output it produces(Society, 2012).

This video gives a brief overview as to how tidal lagoons use the tide of the ocean to generate power.

Overall, tidal energy is an alternative energy source that is in the developing stages.  While showing promise, harvesting tidal energy can be difficult and does not result in a large power output.  Overall, tidal energy is not plausible as an alternative energy source.


Works Cited:

Society, N. G. (2012, October 09). Tidal energy. Retrieved April 14, 2017, from http://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/tidal-energy/

Nuclear Power

Nuclear power helps provide electricity for everyone located in the United States, and throughout the world.  While the process is extremely sensitive, and dangerous if not performed to perfection, nuclear power is the most efficient process to produce electricity.

Nuclear power is so efficient that it produces 3.7 million times as much power as coal generated power (Reasons for Using Nuclear Power).  In other words, if you take the same amount of Uranium-235 and coal, the Uranium-235 will generate 3.7 million times as much power.

So how does nuclear power work? It all begins with Uranium-235.  Uranium-235 is used because it is the heaviest natural element, and contains 92 protons.  Also, because Uranium-235 is so big, it does not require a lot of energy to to split the atoms(How Nuclear Power Works).

Uranium is placed into the core of nuclear reactors.  Neutrons are then sent in to collide with the Uranium atoms, causing them to split.  The splitting of these atoms, known as nuclear fission, releases an extreme amount of energy.  This energy is then used one of two ways in the United States. Either a pressurized water reactor or a boiling water reactor is used.  Nearly two-thirds of nuclear plants in the US use pressurized water reactors (How Nuclear Power Works).

In a boiling water reactor, the energy is used to directly heat up water, allowing it to boil and generate steam.  This steam is then sent through a turbine and generator, producing electricity.

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In a pressurized water reactor, the water around the core is held under pressure, not allowing it to boil.  The heat produced is then transferred outside the plant using a heat exchanger, where it is then allowed to boil.  This boiling water then generates steam, powering a turbine and generator, and in turn generating electricity (How Nuclear Power Works).  Pressurized water reactors are more commonly used due to the fact that the water boiled is separated from the fission process, preventing it from becoming radioactive.

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For every unit of nuclear power produced, 2 units of waste are produced.  This leads to the question, where are we going to store all of this radioactive waste?  Two techniques are commonly used.  First, it can be submerged into a cooling pool, where water is circulated and can store the waste without harming the environment or any person.  As these pools fill up, the waste can be transferred to large steel or concrete casks.

Overall, nuclear power is an extremely efficient way to generate an extremely high quantity of power.  However, there is radioactive waste produced that is extremely harmful and we have yet to find a way to completely rid of the waste without damaging the environment.
 

Works Cited:

How Nuclear Power Works. (n.d.). Retrieved April 03, 2017, from http://www.ucsusa.org/nuclear-power/nuclear-power-technology/how-nuclear-power-works#.WOJ47xIrLLE

Reasons for Using Nuclear Power As an Energy Source. (n.d.). Retrieved April 03, 2017, from http://www.nucleartourist.com/basics/reasons1.htm