Hobbies And Interests
Plant Construction
The life cycle of a nuclear power station begins with construction. During this period the plant is laid out and associated infrastructure constructed. Nuclear power stations require a large source of cooling water, so are often constructed near rivers or seas. They also need transportation links to supply fuel and electricity grid connections to deliver electricity to consumers. Nuclear power stations often have large cooling towers that release waste steam. The nuclear reactor itself is built and housed in an appropriate chamber. This chamber is often dome-shaped and designed to contain the reactor in the event of a meltdown. Plant construction can take between five and 25 years, depending on the local situation or schedule overruns.
Fuel Extraction and Processing
Nuclear fuel is needed to supply the nuclear power station. In conventional nuclear power stations the fuel is uranium 235 or plutonium 239. This is mined and usually delivered to nuclear power stations in the form of rods of uranium oxide or mixed oxide (plutonium blended with uranium oxide). There are other rarer types of fuel, such as magnetic oxide-clad unenriched uranium (MAGNOX) or tristructural isotropic (TRISO) fuel, which consists of pellets of uranium oxide clad in carbon-silicon shells.
Operation
Nuclear power stations are designed to operate for several decades. During this period of the nuclear power station's life cycle the station generates electricity, which is delivered to consumers via the electricity grid. Safety is a central concern in the operation of nuclear power stations, and they are subject to ongoing maintenance and inspection throughout their operational life.
Spent Fuel Storage
During the operational life of the nuclear power station, fuel is delivered and inserted into the nuclear reactor. In the reactor the nuclear fuel undergoes a nuclear reaction, which gradually reduces the amount of nuclear fuel in the fuel rods. When the nuclear fuel is completely used up the spent fuel rods are removed from the reactor and either delivered to a remote storage facility or kept in a similar facility on site.
Decommissioning
The final stage of the nuclear power station life cycle is decommissioning. The nuclear reactor is dismantled and the components are permanently stored in a secure facility. This is because long-term exposure to the radioactive nuclear fuel irradiates nearby components. The remainder of the plant is demolished.