Page 14 - Handbook of Energy Engineering Calculations

help engineers and designers reduce fossil-fuel consumption while increasing
cycle efficiency.
Nuclear-power generation calculations are presented in Section 5 of this
handbook. Nations around the world are rapidly adopting and building
nuclear power plants of large capacity. In the United States, after more than

30 years of being ignored—nuclear power is now suddenly back in favor as a
non-atmospheric-polluting source of electric power. Some large power
companies are planning on shutting down older coal-fired plants in

anticipation of new nuclear generating stations. But even though the steam is
generated by a nuclear reactor, the steam- and power-generating cycles are
much the same as in a conventional oil-, gas-, or coal-fired plant. So the
thermodynamic analyses of the steam cycle follow traditional methods. A
number of calculations presented in this handbook bring the engineer and

designer “up to speed” in the nuclear field, which is growing in importance
every day throughout the world.
The nuclear crisis that occurred in Japan in March 2011, though produced

by natural causes, has the world reviewing its nuclear power plants. While
many countries say they will not stop building new nuclear power plants,
these countries add that they are fully reviewing all safety features of such
plants. The likely outcome is that new nuclear power plants will have a
variety of advanced safety features not seen in earlier plants, Some engineers

are considering triple redundancy for cooling systems and other critical
emergency controls.
Nuclear power-plant accidents are feared by almost everyone because of

the radiation danger to people in nearby cities and towns. Since radiation
cannot usually be seen, it is feared more than a danger that’s visible. For this
reason the public is more likely to reject a proposed nearby nuclear power
plant with the famous retort “not on my backyard.” Hence, engineers expect
greater resistance to locating new nuclear power plants near populated areas.

The eventual outcome to such resistance is difficult to predict. But
engineers familiar with the world’s huge energy demand, and the projected
future population growth, make a unanimous prediction: nuclear power plants

are the only viable choice for supplying the electrical energy demanded by
the world’s growing population and expanding industries. Like it or not,
nuclear power is the world’s most likely future large-scale electrical energy
power source.