NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY AND DISASTERS

NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY AND DISASTERS

Date of presentation: 3rd October, 2019

The content contributors of this PRESENTATION are as follows-

1. Prathamesh Tanavade
2. Tejas Patil
3. Tanmay Vipat
4. Manasvi Tiwari
5. Shivam Singh
6. Dhrumil Sindhwa
7. Girish Thorwade
8. Raj Thakkar
9. Aditya Singh
10. Kiran Sonawane
11. Vikas Yadav
History And Scientific Background

A-Evolution of Nuclear Physics

1-Henry Becquerel In 1896.
2-JJ Thomson A year later.

B-Discovery of Nuclear Technology :

1-Positive Charged material.
2-Pierre Curie Radioactivity research.

C-Nuclear Fission :
1-Process.
2-Atomic Age.

D-Nuclear Fusion :
1-Manhattan Project.
2-First Hydrogen Bomb in 1952.
Applications of Nuclear Energy

▪ Medicine (Radioisotopes)
▪ Scientific Research
▪ Consumer products
▪ Agriculture
▪ Food Irradiation
▪ Transportation
Medical

▪ In nuclear medicine, medical professionals inject a tiny amount of a

radioisotope—a chemical element that produces radiation—into a
patient’s body.

▪ A specific organ picks up the radioisotope, enabling a special camera to

take a detailed picture of how that organ is functioning.

▪ For example: Myocardial perfusion imaging maps the blood flow to the
heart, allowing doctors to see whether a patient has heart disease and
determine the most effective course of treatment.
Medical

▪ Bone scans can detect the spread of cancer six to 18 months earlier
than X-rays.
▪ Kidney scans are much more sensitive than X-rays or ultrasounds in
fully evaluating kidney function.
▪ Imaging with radioactive technetium-99 can help diagnose bone
infections at the earliest possible stage.
Research

▪ The U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires all new drugs to be
tested for safety and effectiveness. More than 80 percent of those drugs
are tested with radioisotopes.

▪ Radioisotopes also are essential to the biomedical research that seeks

causes and cures for diseases such as AIDS, Cancer and Alzheimer’s
disease.

▪ Researchers also use radioisotopes in studies, genetic

metabolic engineering and environmental
protection studies.

▪ Carbon-14, a naturally occurring, long-lived radioactive substance, allows

archaeologists to determine when artefacts containing plant or animal
material were alive, created or used.
Consumer Products

Smoke Detector
• Ionization air by a
produces
of a current. radioactive source
• Smoke traps the electrons and reduces the
current.

• Setting off the alarm.

• Many smoke detectors—installed in nearly 90

percent of U.S. homes—rely on a tiny
radioactive source to sound an alarm when
smoke is present.
Consumer Products

▪ Watches and clocks that “glow in the dark” use a small quantity of a radioisotope
as a source of light.

▪ Computer disks “remember” data better when treated with radioisotopes

▪ Treating nonstick pans with radiation ensures that the coating will stick to the
surface

▪ Photocopiers use small amounts of radiation to eliminate static and prevent paper
from sticking together and jamming the machine

▪ Radiation sterilizes cosmetics, hair products and contact lens solutions, removing
irritants and allergens Radiation sterilizes medical bandages and a variety of
personal health and hygiene products.
Food & Agriculture

▪ Food irradiation kills bacteria, insects and parasites that can cause food-
borne diseases, such as trichinosis and cholera.

▪ According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 76 million

Americans are affected by food-borne illnesses each year, and more than
5,000 die.

▪ In addition to killing bacteria, irradiation can retard spoilage and increase

the shelf life of food.

▪ Food irradiation does not make the food radioactive, and it does not
change the food any more than canning or freezing.
Food & Agriculture

▪ By the end of the 1980s, radiation had eradicated approximately 10

species of pest insects in wide areas, preventing agricultural
catastrophes. These pests included the Mediterranean fruit fly and the
screwworm fly.

Agricultural researchers also use radiation to:

▪ develop hundreds of varieties of hardier, more disease-resistant crops—
including peanuts, tomatoes, onions, rice, soybeans and barley
▪ improve the nutritional value of some crops, as well as improve their
baking or melting qualities or reduce their cooking time
▪ show how plants absorb fertilizer, helping researchers to learn when to
apply fertilizer, and how much to use; this prevents overuse, thus reducing
a major source of soil and water pollution.
Transportation

Nuclear Powered Ships

• Nuclear power is particularly suitable for vessels which need to be at sea for
long periods without refuelling, or for powerful submarine propulsion.

• The majority of the approximately 140 ships powered by small nuclear reactors
are submarines, but they range from icebreakers to aircraft carriers.
Nuclear Reactors for Space
• Radioisotope thermal generators (RTGs) are used in space missions.

• The heat generated by the decay of a radioactive source, often plutionium-

238, is used to generate electricity.

• The Voyager space probes, the Cassini mission to Saturn, the Galileo
mission to Jupiter, and the New Horizons mission to Pluto are all powered by
RTGs.
Hydrogen, Electricity and Cars
Nuclear Weapons

● A nuclear weapon (also called an atom bomb, nuke, atomic bomb, nuclear
warhead,A-bomb, or nuclear bomb) is an explosive device that derives its
destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or
from a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb).
● Both bomb types release large quantities of energy from relatively small
amounts of matter.
● The first test of a fission ("atomic") bomb released an amount of energy
approximately equal to 20,000 tons of TNT (84 TJ).
● A thermonuclear weapon weighing little more than 2,400 pounds (1,100
kg) can release energy equal to more than 1.2 million tons of TNT (5.0
PJ).
Nuclear Weapons

Fission Weapons Fusion Weapons

Nuclear Disaster

Hiroshima And Nagasaki

1. On August 6 1945, an American B-29 bomber dropped an atomic bomb ( Little Boy )on the Japanese city of
Hiroshima. Three days later ( August 7 1945 ), another atomic bomb (Fat Man) was dropped on the Japanese city
Nagasaki. It was the first time a nuclear weapon had been deployed in warfare.

2. Hiroshima was chosen because it had not been targeted during the US Air Force's conventional bombing raids on
Japan, and was therefore regarded as being a suitable place to test the effects of an atomic bomb. It was also an
important military base.

3. Within the first few months after the bombing, it is estimated by the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (a
cooperative Japan-U.S. organization) that between 90,000 and 166,000 people died in Hiroshima, while another 60,000
to 80,000 died in Nagasaki. These deaths include those who died due to the force and excruciating heat of the
explosions as well as deaths caused by acute radiation exposure.

4. While these numbers represent imprecise estimates—due to the fact that it is unknown how many forced laborers
and military personnel were present in the city and that in many cases entire families were killed, leaving no one to
report the deaths—statistics regarding the long term effects have been even more difficult to determine.
Nuclear Disaster
 Nuclear Disaster

5.Following a nuclear explosion, there are two forms of residual radioactivity. The first is the
fallout of the nuclear material and fission products. Most of this was dispersed in the
atmosphere or blown away by the wind. Though some did fall onto the city as black rain, the
level of radioactivity today is so low.
6.The other form of radiation is neutron activation. Neutrons can cause non-radioactive
materials to become radioactive when caught by atomic nuclei.
7. After the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, many thought that any city targeted by an
atomic weapon would become a nuclear wasteland. While the immediate aftermath of the
atomic bombings was horrendous and nightmarish, with innumerable casualties, the populations
of Hiroshima and Nagasaki did not allow their cities to become the sort of wasteland that some
thought was inevitable.
8.The radiation in Hiroshima and Nagasaki today is on a par with the extremely low levels of
background radiation (natural radioactivity) present anywhere on Earth. It has no effect on
human bodies.
Nuclear Disaster
Nuclear Disaster

The Chernobyl accident in 1986 was the result of a flawed reactor

design that was operated with inadequately trained personnel.

● The reactor unit 4 was to be shut down for routine maintenance on 25

April 1986. But, it was decided to take advantage of this shutdown to
determine whether, in the event of a loss of station power, the slowing
turbine could provide enough electrical power to operate the main core
cooling water circulating pumps, until the diesel emergency power
supply became operative.
● The aim of this test was to determine whether cooling of the core could
continue in the event of a loss of power. Due to the misconception that
this experiment belongs to the non-nuclear part of the power plant, it was
carried out without a proper exchange of information between the testing
department and the safety department.
● Hence the test started with inadequate safety precautions and the
operating personnel were not alerted to the nuclear safety implications of
the electrical test and its potential danger.
Nuclear Disaster

There were many fatal effects due to the radiation released. A few of the
effects are listed below −

● Two workers had died. One immediately got burnt to ashes after the
accident, while the other was declared dead at the hospital within few
hours of admission.

● 28 emergency workers and staff died within 4 months of the accident

due to the thermal burns and the radiation effect on their bodies.
Nuclear Disaster

Fukushima

● The Japanese government on

Tuesday raised the rating of the crisis
at the Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant
to a level 7.
● That’s the highest possible level on the
international scale used to evaluate
the seriousness of nuclear incidents.
● The only other nuclear incident to earn
that rating: the 1986 accident at the
Chernobyl nuclear plant in Ukraine
Nuclear Disaster

● Some 370,000 terabecquerels of radioactive iodine and cesium have

been released at Fukushima more than officials originally thought

● Though Fukushima and Chernobyl are both level 7 nuclear accidents,

the health consequences in Japan to date are much less severe

● Fukushima Dai-ichi has released about one-tenth of the amount of

radioactive material that escaped Chernobyl
Nuclear Disaster

● At Chernobyl, an entire reactor exploded

● Fukushima has also experienced explosions and fires, and some of the
reactors containment vessels may be damaged, but the highly
radioactive cores remain largely protected

● Some workers at Fukushima have been exposed to high levels of

radiation since the crisis began. The long-term health effects of that
exposure remain unknown, but there have been no known deaths
associated with the crisis to date.

The World Health Organization confirmed Tuesday there was very little
public health risk outside the 18-mile evacuation zone around the plant
Effects on Humankind

Nuclear impacts on human health

● Relatively small but significant amounts of radiation are released on a

daily basis into the air and water during the course of mining, milling, and
enriching uranium for fuel to create the nuclear energy.

● Additionally, a nuclear power plant cannot operate without routinely

releasing radioactivity into the air and water through the normal
operation of nuclear reactors.

● A thorough examination of the full life-cycle of nuclear power generation

reveals nuclear power to be a dirty, dangerous and expensive form of
energy that poses serious risks to human health, national security.
Effects on Environment

Nuclear impacts on the environment

● There are many consequences that have occurred in the environment as a result
of nuclear power plants.
● Large amounts of carbon dioxide are emitted when power plants are built and
maintained which may cause harm to the surrounding environment. Nuclear
power plants use a cooling system that keeps them from overheating.
● In the case of thermal discharges, nuclear plants may inject over 60% more heat
to the condenser cooling water than do the most modern fossil-fuelled plants of
the same size.
● Radioactive pollution from a nuclear reactor is created by fission in the reactor
core. Some of the radionuclides created by the process escape along various
pathways to the environment
 Nuclear Power of India

1. Nuclear power is the fifth-largest source of electricity in India after coal, gas,
hydroelectricity and wind power.

2. Nuclear power in India delivers a total capacity of 6.7GW, contributing to just

under 2% of the country’s electricity supply. India’s nuclear plants are
controlled by Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL), a state-owned

Corporation which was founded in 1987.

3. India boasts a fleet of seven nuclear power plants.

 Thorium fuel cycle development in India

The long-term goal of India's nuclear program has been to develop an advanced
heavy-water thorium cycle.
The first stage of this employs the PHWRs fuelled by natural uranium, and light
water reactors, which produce plutonium incidentally to their prime purpose of
electricity generation.
Stage 2 uses fast neutron reactors burning the plutonium with the blanket around
the core having uranium as well as thorium, so that further plutonium (ideally high-
fissile Pu) is produced as well as U-233.
 Pokhran-II

The Pokhran-II tests were a series of five nuclear

bomb test explosions conducted by India at the
Indian Army's Pokhran Test Range in May 1998.It
was the second instance of nuclear testing
conducted by India; the first test, code-named
Smiling Buddha, was conducted in May 1974
 Radioactive waste management in India

Radioactive wastes from the nuclear reactors and reprocessing plants are
treated and stored at each site. Waste immobilisation plants (WIP) are in
operation at Tarapur and Trombay and another verification plant was
commissioned by BARC in 2013 at Kalpakkam for wastes from
reprocessing Madras (MAPS) used fuel. The WIPs use borosilicate glass,
as in Europe.
Research on final disposal of high-level and long-lived wastes in a
geological repository is in progress at BARC.
 CONCLUSION

PLANET’S DEVELOPMENT

PLANET’S DESTRUCTION

DISCIPLINE AND
GOOD-WILL