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Nuclear Power02:36

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Controlled nuclear fission reactions are used to generate electricity. Any nuclear reactor that produces power via the fission of uranium or plutonium by bombardment with neutrons has six components: nuclear fuel consisting of fissionable material, a nuclear moderator, a neutron source, control rods, reactor coolant, and a shield and containment system.
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The process of converting very light nuclei into heavier nuclei is also accompanied by the conversion of mass into large amounts of energy, a process called fusion. The principal source of energy in the sun is a net fusion reaction in which four hydrogen nuclei fuse and ultimately produce one helium nucleus and two positrons.
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Nuclear transmutation is the conversion of one nuclide into another. It can occur by the radioactive decay of a nucleus, or the reaction of a nucleus with another particle. The first manmade nucleus was produced in Ernest Rutherford’s laboratory in 1919 by a transmutation reaction, the bombardment of one type of nuclei with other nuclei or with neutrons. Rutherford bombarded nitrogen-14 atoms with high-speed α particles from a natural radioactive isotope of radium and observed...
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Many heavier elements with smaller binding energies per nucleon can decompose into more stable elements that have intermediate mass numbers and larger binding energies per nucleon—that is, mass numbers and binding energies per nucleon that are closer to the “peak” of the binding energy graph near 56. Sometimes neutrons are also produced. This decomposition of a large nucleus into smaller pieces is called fission. The breaking is rather random with the formation of a large...
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The difference between the calculated and experimentally measured masses is known as the mass defect of the atom. In the case of helium-4, the mass defect indicates a “loss” in mass of 4.0331 amu – 4.0026 amu = 0.0305 amu. The loss in mass accompanying the formation of an atom from protons, neutrons, and electrons is due to the conversion of that mass into energy that is evolved as the atom forms. The nuclear binding energy is the energy produced when the atoms’ nucleons are bound...
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Protons and neutrons, collectively called nucleons, are packed together tightly in a nucleus. With a radius of about 10−15 meters, a nucleus is quite small compared to the radius of the entire atom, which is about 10−10 meters. Nuclei are extremely dense compared to bulk matter, averaging 1.8 × 1014 grams per cubic centimeter. If the earth’s density were equal to the average nuclear density, the earth’s radius would be only about 200 meters.
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Liquid metals power advanced nuclear energy systems.

Lin Zhang1, Chang Deng1, Xu Ji1

  • 1School of Nuclear Science and Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.

Innovation (Cambridge (Mass.))
|September 22, 2025
PubMed
Summary

Liquid metals (LMs) are vital for advanced nuclear energy, offering sustainable solutions for both fission and fusion reactors. Key challenges include managing multiphase interactions and magnetohydrodynamic effects for future energy needs.

Keywords:
advanced nuclear energy systemsclean energy and sustainable developmentenergy conversion and utilizationliquid metalslow carbon

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Area of Science:

  • Nuclear Engineering
  • Materials Science

Background:

  • Advanced nuclear energy systems are crucial for a low-carbon transition.
  • Liquid metals (LMs) offer sustainable and environmentally friendly nuclear energy solutions.
  • LMs are essential in specific applications within nuclear energy.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To provide a comprehensive overview of LM applications, challenges, and prospects in advanced nuclear energy (fusion and fission).
  • To highlight the role of LMs in next-generation fission reactors and fusion systems.

Main Methods:

  • Review of current research and development in LM-cooled fission reactors.
  • Analysis of LM properties and challenges in fusion reactor designs.
  • Exploration of sustainable development strategies for LM-cooled reactors.

Main Results:

  • Next-generation fission reactors utilizing LM coolants (e.g., sodium, lead) are in design/construction phases.
  • Unresolved challenges in fission reactors include multiphase/multiphysics interactions, corrosion, and lead-water interactions.
  • LMs are critical for fusion systems due to efficient energy transport and tritium breeding.
  • Major technical hurdles in fusion include surface characteristics and magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) effects.

Conclusions:

  • Liquid metals are integral to advanced nuclear energy, addressing sustainability and the energy crisis.
  • Continued research is needed to overcome multiphysics challenges in fission and MHD effects in fusion.
  • Emphasis on sustainable development is required for new LM-cooled reactor designs.