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No, nuclear power plants do not normally produce hydrogen. They produce heat that is used to make steam which is used to generate electricity. But there is one other thing that is worth considering.
It is possible that hydrogen gas can appear in a meltdown of the core. Extremely high temperatures can cause zirconium, which is used to clad (cover, protect and confine) the fuel to react with water (which is used as the coolant in most reactors). In that case, hydrogen gas can be produced.
Another Answer:
Actually, hydrogen is a normal byproduct of the fission process, both from a catalytic reaction between the zircalloy fuel rod cladding and water, and from the interaction of neutrons with the water, causing disassociation of the oxygen and hydrogen that makes up the water. The oxygen becomes nitrogen-16, which decays with an about 7 second half-life, and the hydrogen forms a gas. Hydrogen recombiners then reassociate the hydrogen and oxygen in controlled (micro) explosions, so as to minimize hydrogen buildup.
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoWe don't generally see hydrogen forming in the normal operation of a nuclear reactor. It (hydrogen) will only appear after something major happens (goes wrong) in the reactor. In a meltdown, the zirconium that is alloyed into the cladding of the nuclear fuel will superheat and burn in water. That creates zirconium oxide, and liberates hydrogen gas. The hydrogen gas is combustible and even explosive if it is mixed in a favorable ratio with air.
Wiki User
∙ 7y ago- Yes, during their construction.
- No, during their use.
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Are the nuclear reactors the same processes occurring in the sun and reactors?
No. The sun produces energy by fusion. It is joining hydrogen atoms into larger helium atoms, which releases energy. Man-made nuclear reactors produce energy by fission. They break large atoms into smaller atoms, which also releases energy.
Is the sun's energy a result of nuclear fission reactions?
The solar energy of the sun is actually from a nuclear reaction, hydrogen is fused into helium liberating a HUGE amount of energy, so YES, the sun's energy is ATOMIC energy, AND the primary source of all the energy we use on Earth today, from oil to hydroelectric, to atomic and geothermal, the Sun is the real source of all these forms of power.
Is the sun made up of mostly hydrogen?
Essentially yes; the sun's energy comes from nuclear fusion with hydrogen being converted to helium.
Can nuclear fusion continue indefinitely?
Nuclear fusion, like any process of producing power, uses fuel in doing so. In the stars, where fusion is the source of their energy, hydrogen is being used in fusion, producing helium plus energy. In any star the supply of hydrogen will eventually run out and the star will die, but its lifetime will be immensely long, many billions of years. On earth, if fusion can be made to work, it will use isotopes of hydrogen which are abundant, so as a source of energy it would last for many thousands of years.
What can you infer about helium from the fact that it is made by a nuclear fusion reaction inside the sun?
That the mass of a helium nucleus is larger than the mass of the hydrogen nucleus. Also, since the star uses this process to produce energy, that the helium atom has less energy than the original hydrogen atoms - and therefore also less mass.
How do you make hydrogen heavier?
You cant. It is an element and thus making it heavier would mean it is no longer hydrogen. However, heavy hydrogen exists and is called deuterium and is made in nuclear reactors.
Is Hydrogen a renewable or nonrenewable energy source?
Hydrogen is a nonrenewable source of energy when used for nuclear fusion (which is still not a technologically attainable power generation mechanism). When used as an energy carrier for oxidation (e.g. fuel cell, and internal combustion engine) hydrogen is not an energy source. In such applications, hydrogen is a man-made resource.
What is nuclear energy made of?
Nuclear Energy is made up of atoms that can be naturally made or man made.
Out of carbon helium hydrogen oxygen and uranium which is the main source of the suns energy?
Hydrogen The sun is just made up of Hydrogen 74.9% and Helium 23.8%. The suns high pressure, and temperature fuses hydrogen into helium. The process is called Nuclear Fusion, this releases a lot of energy.
Are nuclear fuels made of carbon and hydrogen atoms?
no
What are nuclear bombs made from?
Uranium, plutonium or hydrogen.
Nuclear fission where is it found?
stars.... stars are made of hydrogen, helium, and nuclear fusion
Are the nuclear reactors the same processes occurring in the sun and reactors?
No. The sun produces energy by fusion. It is joining hydrogen atoms into larger helium atoms, which releases energy. Man-made nuclear reactors produce energy by fission. They break large atoms into smaller atoms, which also releases energy.
Is the sun's energy a result of nuclear fission reactions?
The solar energy of the sun is actually from a nuclear reaction, hydrogen is fused into helium liberating a HUGE amount of energy, so YES, the sun's energy is ATOMIC energy, AND the primary source of all the energy we use on Earth today, from oil to hydroelectric, to atomic and geothermal, the Sun is the real source of all these forms of power.
What is the principal source of stellar energy?
well htey get there energy from burning the gasses that it is made of like our sun
What is nuclear energy i don't understand?
nuclear energy is a type of energy made by splitting atoms when the atoms split they make energy
Is the sun made up of mostly hydrogen?
Essentially yes; the sun's energy comes from nuclear fusion with hydrogen being converted to helium.
