r.+bravo+nuclear+project+2

__**//Nuclear power//**__

Nuclear power plants use the amazing power of the atom to generate electricity with a very low fuel cost and much less pollution than fossil fuel plants. However, the planning, building, and operating of a nuclear power plant is a long, costly, and very complex process. When the idea for nuclear power plants first came out, the Atomic Energy Commision (AEC) claimed that it would be a cheap way of generating electricity. Compared with fossil fuel power plants, nuclear power plants use very little fuel, so the cost is small, but it is made up for in other areas. The AEC was wrong. In fact, today, nuclear power plants cost just as much to build and run as coal plants do. http://web.mit.edu/nuclearpower/


 * Constructing**

After an order is received to start working on a nuclear power plant, the long multi-year process begins. The most important part of a plant is the nuclear reactor. That is where the nuclear reactions take place. During these reactions radiation is released. To make sure that none of this radiation is released into the environment, the building that houses the reactor must be made to hold it in. The reactor is housed in a dome-shaped building made with extremely thick walls of concrete and steel. The building must be strong enough to stand even if a jet plane crashed into it.


 * How does Nuclear Power Work?**

Nuclear power plants provide about 17 percent of the worlds electricity. In the United States, nuclear power supplies about 15 percent of the electricity overall, but some states get more power from nuclear plants than others. There are more than 400 nuclear power plants around the world, with more than 100 in the United States.