[Reading Science] The Energy That Can Be Produced by '1 kg' of Uranium

The appearance of a temporary storage facility for spent nuclear fuel. Uranium itself is not the problem, but the spent fuel is.
[Photo by YouTube screenshot]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jong-hwa] A 'kilogram (kg)' is a unit of weight. Weight is the force with which gravity pulls an object. Have you ever tried to estimate how much 1 kg weighs?

What is the easiest 1 kg item to find around us? The lightest dumbbell you can lift at a fitness center after work starts at 1 kg, and a 1-liter (ℓ) bottle of water weighs 1 kg.

So, how much energy can 1 kg of weight produce? When converted to calories, 1 kg of body fat, which makes up a large portion of human body weight, equals 7,200 kcal. This 7,200 kcal corresponds to the calories in three and a half fried chickens, and cooking 1 kg of rice yields about eleven bowls of cooked rice.

As such, the energy produced by 1 kg of weight around us is countless. Among them, a representative substance is 'uranium.' Uranium is said to produce about 3 million times the energy of coal and about 2.2 million times that of oil.

The place that uses uranium as raw material to produce energy is a nuclear power plant. The principle of nuclear power generation is not that difficult. Like thermal power generation, it generates electricity by turning turbines with steam, but the fuel is uranium instead of oil or coal used in thermal power plants.

Nuclear power generation produces steam from the heat obtained through uranium's nuclear fission. The steam's force turns turbines, which in turn rotate generators connected to them to produce electricity. The only difference from thermal power generation is the fuel used.

However, due to concerns about the safety of nearby residents and environmental destruction caused by nuclear leaks, such as the Chernobyl nuclear accident in the former Soviet Union and the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan, voices calling for the phasing out of nuclear power plants are growing. Therefore, some countries are gradually reducing nuclear power plants by converting them into children's amusement parks or museums.

Nevertheless, because of its extremely high efficiency, many countries still cannot give up nuclear power plants. In South Korea, there is a fierce debate between those advocating for the phase-out of nuclear power and those supporting its continuation. The national policy on nuclear power utilization changes depending on the administration for this reason.

After the radioactive leak accident, the area near Chernobyl became a dead land where no one can live.
[Photo by YouTube screenshot]

One kilogram of uranium, the fuel for nuclear power generation, is said to produce the same amount of energy as 3,000 tons (t) of coal or 9,000 barrels of oil. This means that 1 gram of uranium can produce the amount of energy made by 3 tons of coal or 9 barrels of oil. Specifically, how much energy is produced by 1 kg of uranium, 3,000 t of coal, and 9,000 barrels of oil?

It is said that just 1 gram of uranium can simultaneously power 23,000 electric heaters rated at 1 kilowatt (kW). This means that 1 kg can power 23 million electric heaters. Comparing the amount of fuel needed to operate a 1 million kW power plant for one year, uranium requires 30 t, oil requires 1.5 million t, and coal requires 2.2 million t. A 1 million kW power plant can supply electricity to 33,000 households at once.

Countries with poor financial conditions find it difficult to give up high-efficiency nuclear power generation. However, to pass on a better environment to future generations, we should not be stingy in investing costs for developing better energy now.

Just as parents strive to pass on a better living environment to their children, could it be that by giving up the efficiency obtainable from uranium, future generations might inherit a better environment?