renewable versus nuclear energy

8/3/2019 Renewable versus Nuclear energy

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Nuclear versus Renewable Energy

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Running head: Nuclear versus Renewable energy

Comparison of nuclear and Renewable energy

SID: 0926018

Anglia Ruskin University


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Contents

Running head: Nuclear versus Renewable energy ..................................................................... 1

Comparison of nuclear and Renewable energy .......................................................................... 1

SID: 0926018 ..............................................................................................................................1

Anglia Ruskin University ...........................................................................................................1

Contents ...................................................................................................................................... 2

ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................... 4

INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................... 4

LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................................................... 5

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................. 10

RESEARCH RESULTS ........................................................................................................... 11

EVALUATION OF RESULTS, FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATION .......................... 13

CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................14

REFERENCE .......................................................................................................................... 14

Bajoria, J., 2009. The U.S India deal. Available at:

http://www.cfr.org/publication/9663/usindia_nuclear_deal.html [accessed 26 0ctober 2010].

.................................................................................................................................................. 15

Campbell, D., 2009. Legacy of the Chernobyl disaster. Guardian online [online] 2 July.

Available at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jul/02/radiation-effects-chernobyl

[accessed 2 November 2010] ................................................................................................... 15

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?

res=9C01E3D9103FF931A25753C1A9669D8B63&ref=matthew_l_wald [accessed 26

October 2010]...........................................................................................................................16

BIBLIOGRAPY ....................................................................................................................... 16


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ABSTRACT

The fear is that the time will come that if we depend

only on fossil fuels as a source of energy might lead

the world to not having a sustainable future. Fossils

fuels contribute to global warming and once used up

it cannot be replaced, therefore alternative energy

such as nuclear and renewable energy are put in

consideration and practise.

This report focuses on the comparison of nuclear and

renewable energy. The research method used is a

qualitative method. The efficiency, safety andnecessity of using nuclear and renewable energy are

considered in the report. The report does not focus

on what type of energy source is reliable but reveals

the possibility of using it effectively.

INTRODUCTION

The change in the climate reveals the need to reduce

our reliance on fossil fuels which contribute to

greenhouse gas emission. Alternative energy sources


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are required to reduce the greenhouse gas emission

and to provide a sustainable future.

This report focuses on the comparison of nuclear and

renewable energy. The comparison is not to determine

which is more reliable but to give the world a view,

that with investments, all these forms of energy can

be efficient.

The report contains the literature review, research

methodology, research result, evaluation of result

and findings. The literature review explains the

benefits and disadvantages of using nuclear and

renewable energy. The research methodology gives

detail of how the research was done.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Energy performs a fundamental role in the entire

world today. It sustains our standard of livelihood;with changes in the climate there is a need to

considerably reduce our dependant on fossil fuels.

Once it is used up it can not be replaced and it also

contributes to global warming (National research

council, 2008; Abdullah, 2007) for this reasons other

means of energy were put into consideration and

actions, this leads me to the comparison of nuclear


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and renewable energy. The different types of energy

aim to provide electricity.

Nuclear energy originates from the splitting of

uranium atoms which is not a renewable resource

unlike wind, water, solar, geothermal or biomass

power (Morris, 2007). This literature review focuses

on the benefits and disadvantages of the different

forms of energy to provide electricity.

Presently there is a contest on the use of nuclear

energy and renewable energy (Acton, 2009). There is a

great deal of fear amongst the public about the use

of nuclear energy, caused by accidents such as

Chernobyl in 1986 and Three Mile Island in

1979(Campbell,2009). These accidents happened as a

result of the failure in the use of the nuclear power

plant. It is a concern which is becoming more

relevant as we move towards a time when fossil fuel

resources may run out, making it essential to find

other power sources. Renewable energy sources such as

hydroelectric power which converts water fallingthrough damns into electricity, geothermal energy

which converts heat in rocks into power, wind farm

generating power from the wind, solar panels which

convert solar energy into electricity are brought

into consideration in investment.


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According to Godfrey (1996) many environmentalists

see nuclear power as a cause of environmental damage.

In terms of safety in the usage of both types of

energies, nuclear energy does not produce gaseous

emission such as green house gases which are harmful

to the environment (Nuclear energy Institute, 2010).

Green house gases are gases such as carbon dioxide,

methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorocarbon and increase

in the concentration of the green house gases results

in global warming. It is true that nuclear power

produces radioactive waste which is a nuclear waste

that poses a threat to the environment, however; it

is preferable compared to the damage done by the

burning of fossil fuels. As new technologies are

processed these provide a means of reducing the

nuclear waste. Looking at the speed at which nucleartechnology is developing it is fair to say that with

more investment nuclear energy can turn out to be a

desirable source of energy.

It is sadly the case that nuclear industry has had a

bad reputation for safety involving the two nuclear

accidents at Three Mile Island and Chernobyl which

was built with old style reactors and made worse by

poor security standards. Developments in technology

have made modern nuclear reactors safer.

It is also vital to look at the option of renewable

energy when considering the form of energy to invest

in. There are huge problems with every form of


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renewable energy; the most capable source of

renewable energy is the hydroelectric power. On the

other hand building a large dam essentially floods a

large region behind the dam which in turn can have a

negative affect on thousands of people. There is also

an issue with the environmental cost of building

dams. A good example is the Aswan dam in Egypt along

Nile, the construction of the dam led to thousands of

people losing their homes and also caused destruction

to wild life.

Solar energy as another renewable energy has

certainly not lived up to expectation. A solar panel

the size of Europe would be needed to power a city

the size of London (Acton, 2009).

Considering other renewable source of energy wind

energy is slightly better(Wald, 2010), the worst

performers of all has been the geothermal and tidal

energy which have been inefficient because no rock

has been found that is hot enough and no wave has

been found that is strong enough. It is perfectly

true that alternative energies are not efficientenough to serve the energy the worlds population

needs.

Nevertheless, with investment all these techniques

possibly will be made efficient enough to supply

mankind. Looking at the situation from a different

angle you will see that there is almost always one

renewable source a country could exploit, like the


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sun for equatorial countries, hot rock for volcanic

regions and others according to the location that can

make the renewable sources work effectively.

Spreading the peaceful use of nuclear power brings

vital security benefits, under the Non-Proliferation

Treaty the declared nuclear power states which are

the USA, UK, Russia, France, and China have promised

to help other countries in getting hold of civilian

nuclear power provided they in turn do not seek

nuclear weapons (Bajoria, 2009). This has only

happened to a limited extent, but

Increasing number of countries seek nuclear materials

for military purposes, so it is the concern of the

declared nuclear weapons state to defend their side

of the deal more strongly, so that others can be held

to theirs.

However, encouraging the further use of nuclear power

is against our security interest. The scientific

technology used in generating nuclear power is the

same used in creating nuclear weapons; this mayprovide a means for some states to pretend to have

interest in only peaceful uses but secretly using it

for military applications. This is the route India

and Israel has followed (Bajoria, 2009). Widespread

use of nuclear power plants is at risk of terrorism.


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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The research methodology defines what the activity of

the research is and how and where the information was

found. It provides a focus on the comparison of

nuclear energy and renewable energy to give the world

a means of a sustainable future.

The research methodology attempts to provide a better

means of power supply of electricity for the world,

which reduces the amount of greenhouse gases that

results in global warming. Therefore, the safety of

using these means of power supply is also put into

consideration is it safer to use nuclear energy than

renewable energy?


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The method used in this research is a qualitative

method. The research event was done mainly in the

library leading to the collection of information from

books, e-books, online newspapers, and online

websites. Searching for information using the library

system resulted in books in relation to the topic of

the research. The research event in the internet led

to different kinds of data about the research topic;

however there were considerations on what kind of

source to be used. The use of the internet gave

access to online newspapers and online websites

concerning the research project.

RESEARCH RESULTS

1.The environmental safety of these forms of

energy.2.The threat of using nuclear energy as nuclear

weapon.

3. The efficiency of renewable energy.

4.The necessity of using alternative forms of

energy.


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The table below shows the sources of radiation

exposure to members of the public UK.

Source

Average annual dose( mSv)^1

Average annual

dose(mSv)^1

%

NATURAL (2.20 Msv or 87 %

Cosmic 0.25 10

Terrestrial Gamma^2 ( from

rocks, soil, etc)

0.33 14

Internal Irradiation (from

naturally occurring

radiation in the food we

eat)

0.3 12

Radon/Thoron^2 (radioactive

gases emitted from some

rocks and building

materials)

1.30 51

MAN MADE (0.326 mSv or 13%)

Medical 0.3 12

Miscellaneous^3 0.01 0.4

Fallout 0.01 0.4

Occupational Exposure 0.005 0.2

Radioactive Waste

Disposal( all sources

0.001


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including nuclear power

stations, nuclear re-

processing plants, hospitals

and research laboratories)

Source: Derived from Hughes, J.S., K.B. Shaw & M.C.

ORiordan (1989) Radiation exposure of the UK

population 1988 Review

EVALUATION OF RESULTS, FINDINGS

AND RECOMMENDATION

Reviewing the results from the research, there is no

doubt that there is a similarity between the

different forms of energy which is to provide a

sustainable energy. Although there are concerns with

the environmental safety of using these forms of

energy, with investments in each of them could make

it safer.

In the case of using nuclear energy as a means of

terrorism, a country that is not part of the non-

proliferation treaty that intends to use nuclear

energy should be examined, if approved of using

nuclear energy, the non-proliferation treaty should


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assign its own security. If not approved then the

renewable form of energy that suits that region

should be used.

CONCLUSION

In summary, nuclear energy is more efficient thanrenewable energy but has issues with radioactive

waste. Renewable energy is also a good source of

energy but has its own issues like the use of damns

causing flooding. However with investment these

sources of energy can be safer and more efficient.

The comparison of nuclear and renewable energy brings

out the benefits and disadvantages, not to determine

which form of energy is more reliable but to give the

world a better chance of making the decision on what

kind of energy source to use.

REFERENCE

Abdullah, R.H., 2007. Stop using fossil fuel. The

stars online [online] 8 may. Available at:

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/5/8/southneast/17638244&sec=southneasthttp://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/5/8/southneast/17638244&sec=southneast


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file=/2007/5/8/southneast/17638244&sec=southneast

[accessed 20 October 2010].

Acton, J., 2009. Nuclear versus Renewable sources.

Available at:

http://www.idebate.org/debatabase/topic_details.php?

topicID=15 [accessed 18 October 2010]

Bajoria, J., 2009. The U.S India deal. Available at:

http://www.cfr.org/publication/9663/usindia_nuclear

_deal.html[accessed 26 0ctober 2010].

Campbell, D., 2009. Legacy of the Chernobyl disaster.

Guardian online [online] 2 July. Available at:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jul/02/r

adiation-effects-chernobyl[accessed 2 November

2010]

Godfrey, B., 1996. Renewable energy: power for a

sustainable future. Oxford: Oxford university press.

Kozloff, L. And Dower, C., 1993. A new power base:

Renewable energy policies for the nineties and

beyond, world resource institute.

Morris, N., 2009. Nuclear power. London: Franklin

watts.
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/5/8/southneast/17638244&sec=southneasthttp://www.idebate.org/debatabase/topic_details.php?topicID=15http://www.idebate.org/debatabase/topic_details.php?topicID=15http://www.cfr.org/publication/9663/usindia_nuclear_deal.htmlhttp://www.cfr.org/publication/9663/usindia_nuclear_deal.htmlhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jul/02/radiation-effects-chernobylhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jul/02/radiation-effects-chernobylhttp://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/5/8/southneast/17638244&sec=southneasthttp://www.idebate.org/debatabase/topic_details.php?topicID=15http://www.idebate.org/debatabase/topic_details.php?topicID=15http://www.cfr.org/publication/9663/usindia_nuclear_deal.htmlhttp://www.cfr.org/publication/9663/usindia_nuclear_deal.htmlhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jul/02/radiation-effects-chernobylhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jul/02/radiation-effects-chernobyl


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National research council (U.S) 2008; Review of DOEs

nuclear energy research and development

program.pg101, National Academic press, Washington

D.C

Nuclear energy Institute, 2010. Nuclear energy plays

essential role in climate change initiatives.

Available at:

http://www.nei.org/resourcesandstats/documentlibrary/

protectingtheenvironment/policybrief/nuclearenergycli

matechangeinitiatives/?page=2 [accessed 18 October

2010]

Wald, M., 2010. Offshore wind power line winds praise

and backing. The New York times online [online] 12

October. Available at:

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?

res=9C01E3D9103FF931A25753C1A9669D8B63&ref=matthew_

l_wald [accessed 26 October 2010].

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renewable versus nuclear energy

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