(a) What is the function of the moderator in a nuclear reactor?(b) What substance acts as the moderator in a pressurizedwater generator? (c) What other substances are used asa moderator in nuclear reactor designs?
Nuclear Fission
Nuclear fission is a type of nuclear reaction in which heavier nuclei split into lighter nuclei by releasing a large quantity of energy. The elements like uranium-235 and plutonium-239 isotope undergo nuclear fission releasing energy. When nuclei undergo fission, some quantity of mass is lost. The lost mass is converted to nuclear energy. Nuclear fission reaction is used in nuclear power plants and atomic bombs. In nuclear power plants, nuclear reactors are used to generate electricity.
Endothermic Nuclear Reaction
A nuclear reaction can be described as a process where two atoms, or two nuclei or nucleus and subatomic particles such as a proton, neutron interact together, and a large amount of energy is produced and new elements are also produced.
(a) What is the function of the moderator in a nuclear reactor?
(b) What substance acts as the moderator in a pressurized
water generator? (c) What other substances are used as
a moderator in nuclear reactor designs?
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