What is the fast breeding reactor?

Fast breeding reactor is a type of nuclear reactor that uses nuclear cleavage to create atoms plutonia 239 as a by -product of uranium atoms 235. This process creates more fuel in the form of plutonia 239 than used. This ability to create or "breed", another fuel is the name given to these types of reactors. A fast breeding reactor can create up to 30% more fuel than it consumes.

Nuclear reactors produce energy by dividing atoms of fission fuels, usually uranium 235. In standard nuclear reactors, most of these neutrons are maintained at low energy levels with an advanced cooling system that usually uses water as a medium. This is done to maintain neutrons at an energy level suitable for maintaining a fission reaction.

In a fast breeding reactor, the cooling system is intentionally effective and is usually full of liquid sodium. This maintains neutrons that are produced by a fission reaction at a higher energy level. These "fast" NeutRony provides the second part of the common name of a fast breeding reactor. High energy neutrons are less suitable for the distribution of other uranium atoms 235, but serve a different purpose.

Instead of distributing uranium atoms 235, "rapid" neutrons are absorbed by uranium atoms 238, which make up most of the fuel of the nuclear reactor in a fast breeding reactor. Uranus 238 is not suitable for cleavage, but after the absorption of another neutron, Uranus 238 is converted to Plutonium 239. Plutonium 239 is very suitable as nuclear fuel and can be used for nuclear weapons. Some atoms plutonium 239 will disintegrate into another uranium isotope, Uranus 239, which is also used as fuel in nuclear reactors.

plutonium is often used for nuclear weapons. For this reason, many fast breeding reactors were closed, which were once functional. Other problems with these types of reactors have contributed to their podlESU popularity among nations with nuclear energy programs. Plutonium 239 must be extracted from other nuclear fuel components, a complex and expensive process. It can also be very dangerous and create toxic radioactive waste as a by -product.