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Nuclear energy, sometimes referred to as atomic energy, originates in the atomic nucleus, which is the extremely dense core at the heart of an atom. A large amount of energy can be released by nuclei in two different ways: fission, in which a very large nucleus is induced to break apart into two smaller ones, and fusion, in which two very small nuclei combine.
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A great deal of energy is released when a large nucleus undergoes fission, but for most nuclei the fission process is not easy to initiate. There are very few nuclei—uranium-235 and plutonium-239, in particular—that are relatively easy to fission. At present, commercial nuclear reactors use fission of uranium-235 as the energy source. A uranium-235 nucleus can be induced to undergo fission through...
This section contains 1,141 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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