How Nuclear Reactors Work
It all begins with an idea.
My question is ultimately to fill my curiosity. As I was trying to find a topic to write about,
I realized that I had never actually looked up how nuclear reactor actually work. This
covers chemistry, physics, and some energy production.
Nuclear reactors on the most basic level are large kettles that convert a chain reaction
to energy. In each reactor there are uranium rods, submerged in water. Each rod is
composed of small uranium pellets (U235 or U236), that are stacked on top of each
other. These rods are then combined with control rods in groups of more than 200
(Office of Nuclear Energy). The control rods are used to maintain a balance of reactions
at any given point. Neutrons are fired at the uranium pellets, further releasing more
neutrons causing a chain reaction. The control rods absorb some of the neutrons to cap
the reaction rate. The reactions cause the surrounding water temperature to rise. Most
reactor while running, sit at around 520 degrees Fahrenheit or 271 degrees Celsius.
(McFadden). The evaporated water from the exothermic reaction is sent through a
turbine. This turbine does two things. First, as the turbine turns it acts as an
electromagnetic motor. The more it turns or rotates on its axis; the more electricity is
produced. The second process the turbine performs is sending the hot water vapor
through a condenser that houses coils. As cold water is drawn into the reactor by
pumps, it passes through the condenser, then to the main reactor housing. The steam
that we typically see from the stacks is the water vapor from the hot coils being sprayed
on to the incoming cold water.
Office of Nuclear Energy. “NUCLEAR 101: How Does a Nuclear Reactor Work?”
Energy.gov, Office of Nuclear Energy, 2 Aug. 2023, www.energy.gov/ne/articles/nuclear-
101-how-does-nuclear-reactor-work.
World Nuclear Association. “Nuclear Essentials - World Nuclear Association.” World-
Nuclear.org, 2022, world-nuclear.org/nuclear-essentials/how-does-a-nuclear-reactor-
work.
McFadden, Christopher. “Nuclear Power: How It Works and Its Pros and Cons.”
Interestingengineering.com, 24 Nov. 2019, interestingengineering.com/science/how-
exactly-does-nuclear-power-work.