ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of the use of nuclear energy, starting with the fundamental physics of fission and fusion processes. The nuclear reactions and the radioactive decay of elements are explained in a simple mechanistic manner. The chain reaction and the neutron cycle in a thermal reactor are also explained. Based on the fundamentals of fission, the essential components of nuclear reactors as well as the operation of the basic types of most commonly used nuclear reactors are described in simple terms. The function and operation of the breeder reactors is also included because if the world is to rely on nuclear energy in the long-term, the more abundant uranium-238 and other fertile nuclear materials must be utilized in breeder reactors, which may become the next generation of reactors. Several useful parameters, which help understand the importance of nuclear reactors and help derive quantitative conclusions on the use of nuclear energy, are computed and presented. Finally, and because past accidents in nuclear power plants have impeded the growth of nuclear energy for decades and have spread fear among the public, three accidents that received the highest notoriety, at the Three Mile Island in the United States, at Chernobyl in the former Soviet Union, and at the Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant in Japan, are described.
