How does fission produce energy

Moving to heavier atoms, less energy is released in each fusion event; until, at iron 26 protons and 30 neutrons , no more energy is released by fusion. Any bigger, it takes energy to make fusion happen. Atoms with really huge nuclei, such as uranium and plutonium do the opposite of fusion: they release energy when they break apart. The Fusion in Europe newsletter delivers news and views on the progress of fusion research directly to your inbox.

The rods can also be lowered all the way down, to stop creating heat and to shut down the reactor in case of an emergency or to change the fuel. The first step in producing electrical energy is enabling the water in the reactor core that contains the uranium bundle to expand into steam.

In the next step, the steam exits the container to drive the turbine. The turbine spins a generator, and finally the generator produces power. Some nuclear plants add another stage to the process that produces a second loop, which converts water to steam again before it drives the turbine. This prevents the radioactive water and steam from coming into direct contact with the turbine. Reactors can be filled with different types of coolant, to enable operation at higher temperatures.

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