Today's nuclear power plants use nuclear..... to generate electricity.
fission?
fission - see replies to Lee
Which of the following sequences of processes best describes how electricity is generated in a nuclear power plant?
Yes, today's nuclear power plants use nuclear fission to generate electricity.
Yes, today's nuclear power plants use nuclear fission to generate electricity. To arrive at this answer, one way is to understand the basic principles of how nuclear power plants operate.
Nuclear fission is a process where the nucleus of an atom, often a heavy radioactive element like uranium or plutonium, is split into two smaller nuclei, releasing a large amount of energy in the process. In a nuclear power plant, this energy is harnessed to produce electricity.
To generate electricity through nuclear fission, nuclear power plants use a chain reaction. This involves bombarding the fuel, usually uranium-235 or plutonium-239, with a neutron, causing the nucleus to split and release more neutrons. These free neutrons then collide with other nuclei, causing them to undergo fission as well, creating a chain reaction.
The heat produced by the fission reactions is used to generate steam, which in turn drives a turbine connected to a generator. The generator then converts mechanical energy into electrical energy, which can be distributed to homes and businesses.
In summary, nuclear fission is the process used in modern nuclear power plants to generate electricity, where the nucleus of radioactive elements is split, releasing energy that is converted into electricity through a chain reaction and steam turbines.