Benchmark 1.

Kopytova Irina

Form 11A

Municipal School №112

The Teacher-Advisor: Olga Nevolina

The Teacher of English

School №112

2008

Objective1

Glossary

Uranium - it is heavy, silvery-white metal which is pyrophoric when finely divided. It is a little softer than steel, and is attacked by cold water in a finely divided state. It is malleable, ductile, and slightly paramagnetic.[http://nucleaо-weapons.nm.ru/theory/uranium.htm]

Acid - Electrolytes that are dissociated and produce only ions of hydrogen.

Alkali – bases that are dissolved in water.

Plutonium – the metal has a silvery appearance and takes on a yellow tarnish when slightly oxidized. It is chemically reactive. A relatively large piece of plutonium is warm to the touch because of the energy given off in alpha decay. Large piece will produce enough heat to boil water. The metal readily dissolves in concentrated hydrochloric acid, hydroiodic acid, or perchloric acid. [1]

Fuel – it is a flammable substance, the basic part of it is carbon. People get thermal energy from the fuel when it is burned.

Fuel resource – they are the resourses of fuel and energy in the nature, that are used by people to produce material things[2]

Natural resource – it is the resources of the materials provided by nature, they are divided on renewable and nonrenewable.

Renewable –resources that are constantly renewed, but the process of renewing takes time and sometimes people’s efforts. (for example wood)

Nonrenewable -resources that can’t be renewed, they are not endless. (gas, oil)

Fuel cycle – the process of producing fuel.

Non-nuclear power plant – the plant that produces energy without using any nuclear materials such as uranium, plutonium …

Nuclear power plant – just unlike the non-nuclear power plant. The plant that produces energy without using any nuclear materials such as uranium, plutonium and others.

Energy units- a common name for all kinds of fuel: oil, gas, coal, wood, nuclear fuel and others.

Pipeline, P’LINE, Conduit – oilline, gasline that pumps over the substance from one place to another.[2]

Safety –the quality or condition of being safe

Security –protection or defense against attack, interference, espionage

To mine resources- to get the recourses out of the earth.

IAEA – International Atomic Energy Agency.

NPC – National Participation Cost.

NPS-Nuclear Power Station

Nuclear weapon - a type of explosive weapon that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions of fusion or fission.

The Nuclear Fuel Cycle –is the process of mining, enrichment and manufacturing of uranium.

Past, Present and Future

The humanity is developing and using a new variety of resources. This is atomic and geothermic energy, sun energy, energy of flows, ebbs and winds and others nontraditional resources. However fuel resources occupy the first place in the line. This is oil, coal, gas, wood and peat.[3]

Every new kind of fuel was used when the time for the new stage of progress had come and I believe that a mankind has developed greatly since the time it used simple energy, though it’s a question whether it’s a real progress or still a regress.

In the timeline following I’ve tried to report all the steps of fuel according to their appearance in the human’s life.

1) Man’s work or slave’s work

2) The energy from using farm animals, water( water weal) and wind energy(wind’s melnici)

3) The beginning of the 18^th century- creating first machines. the end of the 18^th century- creating паровой engine. The main fuel is wood( the end of the 19th century)

4) In 1920 coal was 80% used by consumers.

5) At the end of the last century people started using oil.

6) In the first part of the XX century electricity appeared.

7) In 1960 year nuclear fuel appeared.[4]

During the last thirty years the annual rate of increase of the world’s energy use has been 2.7%The world’s energy use has risen twice by the year 2000. Also the world’s oil and gas demand has increased but these resources are nonrenewable and not endless, so people are in the search for the new more profitable resources of energy. According to the multiple prognoses of Russian and western analytics the situation will change for the use of the natural gas in the nearest 20 years.[5]

The growth of the consumption of energy has given positive results as well as negative ones:

1) +Additional alternative sources of energy

2) +The development of new modern technologies

3) +the growth of the efficiency of all facilities

4) -The destruction of nature: the upset of the ozone layer, global warming as a result…

From the diagram bellow we can see the demand of different energy sources. It’s clearly seen that the main ones are electric power and oil, and gas. This datum concerns the year 2000.

Diagram 1.

Year 2000

Let’s have a look at the diagram 2.

Diagram 2.

Year 2020 (prognosis)

We can compare diagram1 with the diagram 2 and it is clearly seen that the world’s consumption of electric power will grow by the year 2020 “especially the demand on gas”-, western analytics prognose.[6]

Natural resources in the world.

Our world is full of natural resources .They are oil, natural gas, coal, wood, peat and uranium. There are more than 200 countries in the world, each of them has their own natural resources. All countries use them in different ways. Anyway people use natural resources very uneconomically. We will be able to use coal 237 years, gas - 681 years and oil- 40 years, First off all some facts that concern mining.

Coal reserves. 2001.

Region or country.	Reserves.
USA	256177
Canada	6577
Venezuela	479
Germany	65987
Great Britain	1500
France	36
Austria	25
Norway	1
Russia	156978
Ukraine	34146
Kazakhstan	33993
Nigeria	190
China	114477
Japan	773
Afghanistan	66

[7]

Coal is an important natural resource. Its stocks make approximately 100 billion tons in the world. Coal mining a year - 6425 million tons. The largest coal deposit in Russia is Kuznetsk coal pool. The work of coal mining in the USA takes more, than in15 states, but the main "coal states" in the country are Kentucky, Western Virginia, Pennsylvania. The meaning of Wyoming is grown because coal is extracted with an open way.

The coal has lost many consumers as a result of scientific and technical progress: fleet, railway and municipal services. It is used mainly with power stations now.

Oil is the most popular natural resource in the world. The stocks of oil in the world are approximately equal 140 billion tons. The extract of oil makes up 3450 million tons a year. You can find oil in

· the USA,

· Saudi Arabia,

· Canada,

· Venezuela,

· Libya,

· Australia,

· The UK

· World’s oil mining.

Countries	Thous. barrels in a day
Саудовская Аравия	9475
Russia	9400
USA	3979
China	3631
Mexico	3420
Norway	3220
Canada	3135
Venezuela	3081
Nigeria	2451
Кувейт	2418
ОАЭ	2396
Iraq	2093
Brazil	2090
Great Britain	2075
Livia	1720
Angola	1600

The largest deposits of oil in Russia are: Western Siberia, Pechora coal pool, the Arctic Ocean’s shelf, the coast of the Caspian Sea. The greatest meaning in the USA has the development of oil in California and Alaska.

People make petrol, керосин, diesel fuel, various oils spirits, ацетон, plastic, synthetic fibers, rubber, explosive substances, mineral fertilizers, washing-up liquids, foodstuff and hundreds other materials from oil.[6]

During the last 5 years oil demand was reduced in the countries of South-east Asia and Russia in 1997 and 1998 years, when the financial crisis took place . In 1997 oil demand was reduced for 500 thousands in countries of Asia (except China) and in Russia in 1998 year for 100 thousands barrels a day. But in the world demands on oil growth on 585 thousands barrels a day. According to the WEA and EIM the world’s use of oil will achieve 120 barrels a day by the year 2020 that is twice more than in 2000.[6]

I’d like to tell you about gas. Its stocks make 150 billion cubic meters in the world; the gas mining makes up 220 million cubic meters a year. You can find gas in:

Oil and gas reserves in the world.

· USA

· Canada

· Russia

· Venezuela

· Argentina

· Australia.

Gas is extracted in Russia, Western Siberia and in Bashkiria. The largest deposits in the USA are in Alaska. We can use gas on our household needs, for example for preparation of food on gas cookers.

Now let’s see how the world produces electric power.

First 10 countries to produce electric power.

1) Canada

2) USA

3) Great Britain

4) France

5) Germany

6) Brazil

7) India

8) China

9) Japan

10) Russia

First 10 countries to use NPS to produce electric power.

1) Lithuania

2) Ukraine

3) Hungary

4) Bulgaria

5) Slovenia

6) Switzerland

7) France

8) Belgium

9) Slovakia

10) Sweden

It’s seen that France produces energy by using NPS and other resources. It allows this country not only to consume the necessary quantity of the product but also to import it. So this gives France the opportunity to earn.

So, we have come to the question of using nuclear power. People found out alternative fuel. This fuel is the uranium.

The contents of uranium in the earth’s crust is not so great, only 0,003 %. It is used in the nuclear weapon and atomic engineering.

The new field of uranium opens in a southern Iranian province Hormozgan, near Bandar-Abas city. Its deposits in this area has not been studied completely, but these deposits are significant. A large deposit of uranium is planned to be opened in Yakutia. The largest deposit can be open in Karelia republic and Murmansk area. The use of uranium was basically concentrated in ceramic’s technology and metallurgy.

In the world there are a lot of natural resources, but in order to use them longer we must expend them more economically and rationally.[8,9,10]

Uranium mining in the world.[11]

Countries	Uranium(tons)
Canada	10000
USA	1000
Brazil	500
Germany	100
France	9
Czechia	80
Ukraine	100
Roumania	80
Niger	3000
Namibia	2000
ЮАР	700
Kazakhstan	4500
Uzbekistan	1800
Pakistan	13
India	120
Russia	3800
China	730
Austria	10000

As experts say there are more than 5 millions tons of uranium. The world’s leader in uranium reserves is Australia(989 th. tons), then comes Kazakhstan(622), Rusia(615), Canada(441), ЮАР(398) and Ukraine(250 ) The richest uranium ore is in Canada( 10% of uranium in the ore), Russia has only 0.1% Nowadays the consumption of the uranium ore exceeds the mining if this material, so Rosatom plans to increase capacities. The main Russia perspective is bound up with Elconskiy region in South Yacutiya. But even this perspective won’t defray all the necessities. That’s why Russia has to participate in the united mine workings together with some other countries. The main partner is probably Kazakhstan. The Ukrainian Uranium is send to Russia to produce fuel for Ukrainian NPSs. [12]

We see that the problem of getting energy is becoming very acute with every passing year. So, I believe that the humanity should restore the renewable and try to find new ways of getting energy, that is thanks to the nature still sufficient.

Objective 2

The humanity is connected with consumption of energy. The traditional sources of energy are exhausted. The use of atomic energy is the Future of the Earth.

Atomic electric power station can use uranium and plutonium.

Uranium ore doesn’t contain enough this element; therefore uranium works due to its enrichment. After that uranium takes part in thermonuclear reaction. The aim of this reaction is to get energy. People learned to spend this reaction slowly and they use educed energy¹. Royersford discovered radiation in 1919. After that there were built many nuclear power stations. Five nuclear power stations are in Ukraine, Russia has NPS and countries of North Europe do. One gram of the radioactive fuel gives the same energy as two millions kilos of coil burned²

As for our region and our town we don’t have our own NPS and the energy of Chelyabinsk region is insufficient so we use the energy from Beloiarskaia NPS.

A nuclear fuel cycle:

1) Uranium mining and milling

2) Natural uranium

3) Conversion

4) Uranium hexafluoride

5) Uranium enrichment and depleted uranium or. . .

6) Uranium enrichment then enriched uranium hexafluoride

7) Fuel fabrication

8) Fresh fuel

9) Production of electricity

10) Spent fuel

11) Interim storage and for help spent nuclear fuel (SNF) waste disposal

12) Interim storage then reprocessing and waste disposal.[13]

Reactors technologies:

A popular and useful method of categorising reactors is according to the type of coolant used. About 80% of commercial reactors in use at the beginning of 2003 were cooled and moderated with ordinary water and are known as light water reactors (LWRs). Of these, two major types exist – pressurized water reactors (PWRs), which includes a Russian variant (VVER), and boiling water reactors (BWRs). The majority of the remaining 20% of reactors are cooled either by heavy water or gas. Figure 15 shows how the main types of commercial reactor are distributed worldwide.

Source: IAEA

Each of the main types of commercial reactor is briefly described below with data on the number of reactors current as of 1 January 2003.

Within each basic type there are different designs resulting from different national, manufacturer and customer requirements.

Pressurised water reactors (PWRs)

At the beginning of 2003, there were 212 PWRs worldwide, of which 150 were in France, Japan and the United States.

Ordinary water in used as both coolant and moderator. The coolant is kept at high temperatures (about 300 degreesC). It circulates in the primary system, composed mainly of the reactor pressure vessel and primary piping, using powerful pumps. As it passes through the steam generator, the heat is transferred to boil water in a separate, secondary loop. The steam thus produced drives the electricity-producing turbine generators.

VVERs

A total of 51 VVERs were in operation, of which 26 were in the Russian Federation and Ukraine. They are also operating VVERs

in Armenia, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Finland, Hungary and the Slovak Republic. The name is a Russian acronym connoting a water-cooled, water-moderated energy reactor. VVERs are, in essence, Russian-designed PWrs.

First-generation VVER (type 440/230) reactors need expensive modifications because their original designs do not correspond to contemporary practices in nuclear safety. As a result, decisions have been taken to shut down some of these units, such as in Bulgaria and the Slovak Republic.

Boiling water reactors (BWRs)

There were 92 BWRs operating in nine countries, of which Japan and the United States account for 64. In a BWR, ordinary water acts as both coolant and moderator. The coolant is kept at a lower pressure than in a PWR (about 7 MPa or 1000 psi) allowing the coolant to boil as it receives heat from the reactors. The resultant steam is passed directly to the turbine generators to produce electricity. While the absence of a steam generator simplifies the design, as compared with PWRs, radioactivity contaminates the electricity generating turbine.

Pressurised heavy water reactors (PHWRs)

Thirty-four PHWRs were operating worldwide in six countries, of which 14 were in their country of origin, Canada, and the remainder in Argentina, India, Pakistan, the Republic of Korea and Romania. Known as CANDU reactors (short for Canadian deuterium uranium), they use heavy water (D ₂O, water with the heavier deuterium isotope of hydrogen), as both coolant and moderator.

Heavy water allows natural uranium to be used as the fuel, thereby eliminating the need, and cost, to enrich the uranium. On the other hand, the production of heavy water requires a dedicated plant to separate the D₂O from its natural concentration of much less than O. 1% to the 99% used in a CANDU reactor. As in a PWR, the coolant is passed through a steam generator so as to boil ordinary water in a separate loop. An advantage of the CANDU design is that refueling can take place during operation, whereas PWRs and BWRs must shut down in order to refuel. This feature allows high availability but also increases the complexity of operation.

Gas-cooled reactors (GCR)

As regards gas-cooled reactors, 33 were in commercial use only the United Kingdom. There are two types, the Magnox (named from the magnesium alloy used to clad the fuel elements) and the advanced gas-cooled reactor (AGR). Both use carbon dioxide as the coolant and graphite as the moderator. The Magnox uses natural uranium as fuel and the AGR, enriched uranium. Like CANDU reactors, these designs can be refueled on-line, with the characteristics as stated about.

RBMK

Seventeen RBMK remain in operation of which 15were in the Russian Federation and two in Lithuania. The name is a Russian acronym meaning large power boiling reactor.

Ordinary water is used as the coolant and graphite as the moderator. As with a BWR, the coolant boils as it passed thought the reactor and the resultant steam is steam directly to turbine generators.

The RBMK, as an early design, was often built, and some are being operated, without safety characteristic and features required elsewhere. The well-known accident at Chernobyl (Ukraine) in 1986 happened to a reactor of this type.

Reactors of this type are the object of special safety concerns because they cannot be upgraded to correspond to contemporary safety practices at reasonable cost. [14]

At present Russia has the project based on the use of reactors with high-speed neutrons. In Russia this type of reactors forms a closed nuclear fuel cycle. That’s why there is no problem of pollution. Moreover they recycle nuclear waste. I think our region can use wastes from ‘Lighthouse’ in Ozersk. The outlook on energy is based on the reaction of thermonuclear synthesis of hydrogen together with high temperature nuclear reactors. These reactions are accompanied by the immense quantity of energy.One gram of hydrogen in thermonuclear reaction gives 15 million times more energy than one gram of coil burned. When the explosion of hydrogen bombs happened scientists realized that it’s a great danger.

We can see differences between civil and military use of nuclear energy. We remember the most awful consequences of military use of atomic bomb in Japan in 1945. Thousands of people died and hundreds thousands became the victims influence of nuclear energy on DNA. Scientist calculated the consequences of nuclear explosion. Clouds of ash will rise and close the sun for ever. The temperature will fall. ‘Atomic winter’ will start. Only those who hide in bomb shelters will survive. But their lives will be just like a delay until the last day comes. Only mutated cockroaches and rats will continue their generations.

When the atom bomb is tested in air, water and under ground the radiation pollution takes place.

[15]

The level of radiation is high in the river Techa. In the forests near Pripjat after the explosion of the Chernobyl NPS huge mushrooms are found.

?

A question : which mushrooms do you prefer? None!

Peaceful using of nuclear energy has wide horizons.

The first nuclear ship ’Lenin’ was made in the USSR in 1959. And the first nuclear power station began its work in 1954 in Obninsk.Studying the laws of nuclear transmuting is of great importance. In the University in California the 97^th chemical element was found and was called Berkly, it’s a very rare material, but its power is in the future.And in Dybna in Russia new chemical elements from 104^th to 107^th.All these researches not only give new ways of getting energy but also broden our knowledge about nature.[16 ]

Nuclear energy can be used in medicine.

People with cancer are cured with radiation therapy.

But differences between civil and military use of nuclear energy are deceptive. Reactors and bombs look like Siamese twins. If the state has project of civil use the nuclear energy nobody can mind this state to make an atomic bomb. Someone can use research reactor in military aim. During the last 50 years heads of some states have sanctioned secret military elaborations together with the development of peaceful energy use[17].

The military (explosive) use and the (non-explosive) civil use of nuclear energy are two sides of a coin that always will remain connected in the public eye. Most of that is unavoidable; something we have to live with. Military use preceded civil/power use, and the reactor business has been shaped to some extent by military needs. What does confidence-building mean in this context? Confidence in what? For NPT Non-Nuclear-Weapon States it would mean confidence that all nuclear material in all nuclear activities12 would be used only for peaceful purposes and be under IAEA safeguards. For Nuclear-Weapon States and non-NPT parties similar confidence cannot exist. For the Nuclear-Weapon States the situation would improve if there would be a complete and verifiable separation of military and civil activities. Although there are significant differences between the NWS, in none of them are these conditions for 100% fulfilled13. These are weaknesses in the regime, but with only 4 States outside the NPT regime, the situation is much better than in the seventies and the eighties when the NPT dam was still being built and a considerable number of important nuclear States were not a party. The fact that the IAEA can provide assurances14, based on its safeguards activities, about the peaceful use of the nuclear material and the peaceful nature of the nuclear activities is an essential ingredient for building or increasing trust among States.[18]

A future without nuclear power is possible, placing renewable and CO2 capture and storage in a key position, and increasing Europe’s dependence on natural gas imports.

References

1. http://nuclear- weapons.nm.ru/theory/plutonium.htm]

2. http://www.glossary.ru/cgi-bin]

3.http://eup.ru/Documents/2006-07-15/41D7E-1.asp- http://eup.ru/Documents/2006-07-15/41D7E-4.asp

4 .Bernard J. Nebel Environmental Science The Way the World Works Department of Biology, Catonsville Community College Page 109 of 112

5.http://www.ngv.ru and журнал ”Нефтегазовая вертикаль”

6.http://www/ngv/ru

7.]United States Energy Information Administration

8.www.schools.keldysh.ru

9.www.rustrana.ru

10.http://www.bigpi.biysk.ru/encicl/articles/42/1004244/1004244A.htm

11Журнал “География”, №17/2006 По данным карты. Карта составлена Д.В. Зайцем

12.www.IranAtom.ru

13.Nuclear Development, Nuclear Energy Today, Nuclear Energy Agency/ Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, page 23

14.Nuclear Development, Nuclear Energy Today, Nuclear Energy Agency/ Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, page 17-19

15. http://images.google.com/

16. hppt:/www.erudition.ru/referat/ref/id.24541_1.htm

17. http://nuclear-weapons.nm.ru/Russia/weapons/arsenal/jan2001.htm

18 .http://www.mi.infn.it/~landnet/Doc/Reactors/klerk.pdf