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What is a heavy element used in nuclear bombs and nuclear energy?
Wiki User
∙ 16y ago
When it comes to heavy elements that are used in weapons and in reactors, uranium and plutonium are both candidates. The first atomic bombs were made of uranium, and they are now pretty much made of plutonium. Some special nuclear reactors are powered by plutonium fuel, but most reactors for power generation use (enriched) uranium for fuel. Links are provided to relevant articles posted by our friends at Wikipedia, where knowledge is free.
Wiki User
∙ 16y ago
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What makes up a nuclear bomb?
Depends on the type of bomb. The first nuclear weapons were fission weapons- they used a heavy metal such as Uranium or Plutonium. These metals, when compressed by explosives, would undergo nuclear fission, and break into lighter elements, releasing heat and radiation. Later, larger bombs were fusion bombs. They used a fission bomb to start the nuclear reaction, but then used that energy to FUSE light elements, such as Deuterium and Tritium into heavier elements, releasing LARGE amounts of heat and radiation.
The splitting of an atom nucleus into smaller nuclei is called?
Neclear fission
The splitting of a heavy nucleus is called?
nuclear fission
What is the heviest element?
The heviest element is mercury. It is heavy because it is so dense.
What is a heavy element used in coins and jewelry?
gold
Why are thermonuclear bombs are more disastrous than nuclear bombs?
Nuclear bombs use nuclear fission of some heavy element, usually uranium or plutonium. Thermonuclear bombs use the detonation of a fission bomb to ignite the fusion of hydrogen. Such weapons are more powerful than ordinary nuclear weapons because nuclear fusion releases more energy than nuclear fission, and because the process of fusion itself can be used to ignite more fission.
Does Nuclear power plants on Earth create energy in the same way as the Sun?
No, nuclear power plants get their energy from fissionof the heavy element uranium, the sun gets its energy from fusion of the light element hydrogen.
Where is the source of nuclear energy found?
Nuclear energy is gained from atoms of any kind, thus the name 'Nuclear'. We generally only use heavy, radioactive atoms for nuclear energy though, as they contain lots of energy and are easier to split than others typically. The most common element used in Nuclear Energy plants is Uranium, which is mined naturally in many world locations.
What is heavy water used for?
Heavy water is used in making hydrogen bombs.
Give an example of nuclear energy?
heavy water
What was the difference in the bombs?
The first one was a 'atomic-bomb' which used nuclear fission which is the splitting of 'large, heavy' elements. ie ones with a high mass number. The other type of bomb is a 'Hydrogen-Bomb' which is nuclear fussion; the same process as the sun produces energy. This is small atoms gaining a proton becoming a larger element. In this case Hydrogen is turning into Helium. This process produces much more energy.
What are the 3 main types of nuclear reactions?
Nuclear fission: When an element breaks apart to form lighter elements and other sub-atomic particles. Nuclear fusion: When two lighter elements fuse to form heavier ones.
What are fusion and fission with respect to nuclear physics?
Fission is a nuclear reaction where a heavy atom is split up into lighter elements, thereby producing energy. Fission is commonly used in nuclear power plants, but someday they will use fusion. Fusion is a nuclear reaction where very light elements are fused together under enormous heat and pressure into heavier elements, thereby producing energy. The Sun and all the stars are fusion reactors. Thermonuclear bombs (H-bombs) use fission (an A-bomb) to produce the heat needed for fusion.
Meaning of nuclear energy?
Nuclear energy is energy released either by fissioning of heavy nuclei such as Uranium235 or Plutonium239, or by fusion of light isotopes such as those of hydrogen.
How does fission produce?
Nuclear fission is nuclear reaction in which nucleus of an atom , usually a heavy element, splits into smaller parts i.e. lighter nuclei . Free neutrons and photons are produced along with release of large amount of energy.
What is the energy source heavy water?
Heavy water contains heavy hydrogen, i.e., deuterium. Once nuclear fusion is improved, it might become a viable energy source.
Can a hydrogen nuclear fission reaction restart the hydrogen fusion reaction?
No, hydrogen does not fission. Fission only occurs in heavy elements that are well past the peak in binding energy per nucleon (where binding energy per nucleon is decreasing), and fusion can only occur in light elements which are in the portion of the binding energy curve where binding energy per nucleon is increasing. When you fission a heavy element or fuse light elements, the product nuclei have higher binding energies per nucleon than the original element. This is where the energy release comes from. Check out the Wikipedia article on nuclear binding energy.
