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In a thermal-neutron reactor, the nucleus of a heavy fuel element such as uranium absorbs a slow-moving free neutron, becomes unstable, and then splits into two smaller atoms (fission products). The fission process for 235 U nuclei yields two fission products, two to three fast-moving free neutrons, plus an amount of energy primarily manifested ...
The aim of the template is to show the characteristics of an reactor design (e.g. RBMK) or individual experimental or prototype reactors (e.g. Chicago Pile-1 or Superphénix), but not for individual power plants (e.g. not Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant)
A neutron's energy can vary widely, but it is not uncommon to have energies up to and exceeding 10 MeV (10,000,000 eV) in the centre of a nuclear reactor. A neutron with a significant amount of energy will create a displacement cascade in a matrix via elastic collisions. For example, a 1 MeV neutron striking graphite will create 900 ...
A thermal-neutron reactor is a nuclear reactor that uses slow or thermal neutrons.. ("Thermal" does not mean hot in an absolute sense, but means in thermal equilibrium with the medium it is interacting with, the reactor's fuel, moderator and structure, which is much lower energy than the fast neutrons initially produced by fission.)
Most nuclear reactors use a chain reaction to induce a controlled rate of nuclear fission in fissile material, releasing both energy and free neutrons. A reactor consists of an assembly of nuclear fuel (a reactor core), usually surrounded by a neutron moderator such as regular water, heavy water, graphite, or zirconium hydride, and fitted with ...
Diagram of a nuclear reactor using graphite as a moderator "Graphite reactor" directs here. For the graphite reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, see X-10 Graphite Reactor. A graphite-moderated reactor is a nuclear reactor that uses carbon as a neutron moderator, which allows natural uranium to be used as nuclear fuel.
1943 Reactor diagram using boron control rods. Control rods are inserted into the core of a nuclear reactor and adjusted in order to control the rate of the nuclear chain reaction and, thereby, the thermal power output of the reactor, the rate of steam production, and the electrical power output of the power station.
A gas-cooled reactor (GCR) is a nuclear reactor that uses graphite as a neutron moderator and a gas (carbon dioxide or helium in extant designs) as coolant. [1] Although there are many other types of reactor cooled by gas, the terms GCR and to a lesser extent gas cooled reactor are particularly used to refer to this type of reactor.