Reasons for Active Research in Atomic Energy

Nuclear energy is energy stored within an atom’s nucleus. Atoms are tiny particles that make up all matter in the universe and there is a huge amount of energy that holds an atom’s nucleus together. In fact, the power that holds the nucleus together is officially called the “strong force”. Nuclear energy can be used to create electricity. However, the energy must be released from atoms in one of the two ways which are nuclear fusion or nuclear fission. Nuclear fusion is a process in which energy is given out from atoms that are fused to create a bigger atom. An example of nuclear fusion is the energy released from the sun.

Nuclear fission, however, is the process in which atoms are broken apart creating tinier atoms and giving out energy. Nuclear fission is how electricity is produced from nuclear power plants all around the world. Australia however has not had a nuclear energy station despite nuclear energy having the greatest capacity factor compared to the other sources of energy by far and Australia having a large availability for nuclear resources. Furthermore, in most places, nuclear energy, and fossil fuels compete from the perspective of expense for electricity generation. However, the environmental impact of nuclear power when compared to a coal power station has fewer pollutants while generating of electricity. Which is a key component on why nuclear power represents a solution to Australia and should be actively researched in order to assess its suitability for the Australian energy market. However, nuclear power stations produce dangerous waste but can be safely stored using similar practices to those currently used for toxic waste.

The world’s greatest resources of low-cost uranium are possessed by Australia and this is about 40% of the world’s resources in this category. This may be one of the key components in which why nuclear energy would present a solution to Australia’s energy security as at the moment Australia is heavily relying on energy produced by fossil fuels compared to other countries.

During 2016 alone, Australia had been the largest net exporter of coal having 32% of the global exports and it was the fourth-largest producer of coal having 6.9% of the global production which was roughly 503Mt of coal and 77% from the production been exported. At this rate, it is estimated that the reserves may in fact only last for about 43 more years. As a result, making use of Australia’s abundance in nuclear resources to produce energy may present a solution to Australia’s energy security. This is due to the energy capacity of nuclear power which is greater in efficiency than the burning of fossil fuels because it is known that the fission of 1 g of uranium per day emits about 1 MW which would require about 3 tons of coal or 600 gallons of fuel oil per day to produce this amount of energy making nuclear fuel’s efficiency far greater than the other sources.

Furthermore, during 2017, nuclear plants managed to work at full capacity 92% of the time which can be compared to coal plants which worked 54% of the time, natural gas plants 55% of the time, wind generators 37% of the time and solar plants with 27% This is because renewable sources of energy for the generation of electricity consist of a diverse group such as wind, solar, tidal, hydro, geothermal and biomass-based generation and besides hydropower at a handful of places where it can be found in abundance, none of these are suitable, intrinsically or economically, for extensive power generation in a continuous and reliable supply. This means that nuclear energy will be able to provide a more constant stable amount of electricity compared to other sources of energy. In terms of expenses, however, the price of electricity production by nuclear power is 1.82 cents per kWh. For coal, however, the cost of electricity generation is 2.13 cents per kWh and natural gas is 3.69 cents per kWh.

This shows that nuclear energy is the more cost-effective option in terms of electricity production. Therefore, the nuclear energy industry would benefit the economy of the country. In terms of economic benefits, the nuclear industry would also play an important role in job creation and economic growth, as it would provide not only short-term but also lasting employment. It has been analyzed that the almost 100 reactors in the United States generate substantial domestic economic value in electricity sales and revenue which is $40 billion to $50 billion each year and this production is distributed through more than 100,000 workers. However, nuclear power plants are more costly to build compared to other sources of energy. This makes fossil fuels and nuclear power compete in terms of cost efficiency.

As a result, more key components should be analyzed to overcome this issue such as the environmental impact these technologies would have. Unlike fossil fuels, nuclear fission provides energy without releasing greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide. From January to September 2013, statistics show that Australia has added 542.1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere which is 3 times more than that of the EU due to Australia’s heavy dependence on electricity from burning fossil fuels which causes heat to be trapped in the atmosphere. This makes it the main contributor to global warming and climate change. They also emit pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, toxic metals, arsenic, cadmium, and mercury. Nuclear power plants however do also release radioactive waste which would be harmful to the environment but unlike the waste from fossil fuels, radioactive waste can be treated by techniques such as compaction which decreases its volume, filtration, and ion exchange which gets rid of radionuclide content, or precipitation to change what it composes of the waste can also be treated by conditioning in which waste is changed into a way that it can be safely transported, handled, stored and disposed of. As a result, Nuclear energy generation would emit a minimal impact on the environment making it less than Australia’s current main choice of electricity generation which is through fossil fuels.

In conclusion, due to the development in the country and large-scale blackouts in recent years, the Australian government should actively research nuclear power as it presents a solution due to its abundance in resources in Australia and its high energy capacity of nuclear power which is greater in efficiency than the burning of fossil fuels and renewable energy sources and as nuclear energy can work at full capacity to generate 92% of the time which is far greater than coal plants and renewable sources. Nuclear energy is also more environmentally friendly when compared to Australia’s current main source of energy as its minimal greenhouse gas emissions is a very appealing benefit of nuclear power as global warming is a largely discussed issue. Furthermore, nuclear energy is also a very cost-efficient option as it plays an important role in job creation and has a low cost for electricity production.

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