0
They both employ steam turbine/generators operating on the Rankine cycle.
They both produce similar amounts of radioactive waste:
- Nuclear power plants "burn" uranium or plutonium through nuclear fission. The amount of nuclear waste produced is about 3 metric tons per terawatt-hour.
- Coal contains small amounts of uranium and thorium, but you have to burn so much coal to produce the same amount of energy, that the total amount of nuclear waste produced by burning coal is about 2 metric tons per terawatt-hour.
Some of this nuclear waste escapes or is dumped into the environment, so both power plants also irradiate you. Coal power plants actually irradiate you 100 times as much as nuclear power plants, since their waste is not as tightly regulated by the government:
- People are exposed to 5 person-rem/year from nuclear power plants.
- People are exposed to 500 person-rem/year from coal power plants.
Add your answer:
Earn +20 pts
Why do fusion and fission produce energy?
The heat produced by controlled nuclear reactions is used to operate steam turbines that generate electricity in nuclear power plants in much the same manner as coal or oil fired fossil fuel power plants, except the nuclear plants do not produce carbon dioxide and other 'greenhouse gases' released by burning fossil fuels.
What explains the position of those who oppose expanding nuclear power plants in the US?
Some opposition to the expansion of nuclear power plants in the US is generated by those who produce power by other means such as coal, oil, and gas. But the major opposition comes from the part of the population that has a somewhat exaggerated fear of nuclear power plants. Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima loom large as nuclear disasters. All three situations were the result of poor design and construction.
In the UK power stations use coal oil gas and nuclear?
Coal, natural gas, and nuclear mostly, very little oil now. Also some wind power.
Why are nuclear power stations safe to work at?
The extremely unlikely, yet possible, chance of a nuclear power plant causing a major disaster via meltdown has resulted in the implementation of not only the strictest safety regulations for any energy production industry, but for practically everyindustry there is. Therefore, the nuclear power sector is one of the safest industries, period. For example, since 1969 there has been only one nuclear power accident resulting in the immediate loss of 5 or more lives (Chernobyl, 31 people) whereas there have been 1044 such accidents resulting in 18, 017 deaths from Coal plants. If you normalize those numbers to take into account the fact that there are more coal plants than nuclear plants (using a term known as GWey, GigaWatt-year of electric power) you come up with Coal: .597 fatalities/GWey and Nuclear: .048 fatalities/GWey, showing that nuclear plants have thus far been roughly 10 times safer to work at than coal plants.What about long term effects? Glad you asked. The high end probability value of nuclear power deaths over the next 70 years from Chernobyl is 33,000 (33 thousand) which is about the probability of all deaths caused by nuclear power accidents since the chance of a nuclear power accident per year is about one in one million. The high-end probability of deaths caused by natural background radiation over the next 70 years is about 50,000,000 (50 million). The high-end probability of deaths caused by coal power plants over the next 70 years is about 70,000,000 (70 million)
What would the mitochondria be if you were to compare it to the government?
Coal mines or nuclear power plants I would say. Some sort of energy system, that takes in fuel and spits out energy in abundance.
What is the difference between coal power plants and nuclear power plants?
because coal power plants use coal and nuclear power plants use nuclear energy to make electricity!!
What is an advantage of nuclear power plants over coal power plants?
Nuclear power plants don't release greenhouse gases. Coal power plants are cheaper to build.
What is an advantage of coal power plants over nuclear power plants?
Coal Power plants are cheaper to build.
What is an advantage of nuclear power plants over coal power plant?
Coal Power plants are cheaper to build.
What is advantage of coal power plants over nuclear power plant?
Coal Power plants are cheaper to build.
Which produces more radioactivity in the atmosphere coal fire power plants or nuclear power plants?
Coal fired plants.
Compare and contrast coal power plants and energy in hearing?
coal uses fossil fuels and nuclear power plants doesn't
What is the difference between a nuclear power station and coal fired power station?
The difference is in the name; nuclear power plants produce electricity via a nuclear reaction producing head to turn a turbine, whereas coal fired power plants burn coal to produce the same efffect.
Do nuclear power plants pollute more than coal power plants?
No. Nuclear power is more efficient because nuclear power is used as splitting atoms, making big bursts of energy, whereas coal power is simply burning coal. So nuclear power uses uranium fission to create energy (electricity), whereas coal power burns coal, emitting carbon. (Mind you, nuclear energy leaves behind radioactive waste - that is arguably easier to deal with for the time being. Not to mention that accidents at nuclear plants can have devastating environmental effects.
What fuel can electric power plants use as fuel?
The most common way power plants generate electricity is by burning coal. Some use"green" alternatives like solar power or wind power, but the most common is coal. There's a few out there that use nuclear power to generate electricity, but not that many.
How common are coal powered plants?
Coal powered electricity generating plants are quite common. Here in the provice of Ontario (where I live and type) I know that approximately one third of the electricity in the provice is generated by coal power (the other thirds being nuclear and hydroelectric).
What do coal power plants and hydroelectric power plants have in common?
They both generate electricity.
