frlday, march 18, 1979
daily nebraskan
pagaO
University nuclear rectctor won't power single light bulb
By MikeSwecney
The nuclear reactor at UNL doesn't fit
the popular picture of nuclear power plants
generating enough power to light i city.
Nebraska'! reactor, in the basement of
the Nebraska Engineering Center, can't
even power tingle light bulb .
The reactor contains about $100,000 of
uranium in 265 fuel rods surrounded by t
water bath, but it produces less than one
watt of power, according to Dennis Alex
ander, associate professor of mechanical
engineering.
"That's not even enough to heat the
water," Alexander said.
He explained that the reactor is an edu
cational tool for the engineering college.
It helps students get used to low4evel
radiation and also gives them an
understanding of what goes on in a large re
actor, he said.
Student experiment
Students may perform small ex pe de
ments with the reactor, Alexander said.
For example, he said , students chart the
reactor's production of neutrons (neutrally
charged atomic particles), or experiment
with making objects radioactive.
Alexander said the reactor is not
large enough to be used in research. He said
UNL is the only school in the Big Eight
without a research reactor, because of a
lack of funds.
The university's reactor is sub-critical,
Alexander said, In other words, the reactor
must have a steady supply of neutrons to
interact with the uranium and sustain the
reactor's power, he said.
Critical reactors operate differently.
Once a reaction Is started in a critical re
actor, it will continue even if the neutron
source is removed, he said.
"It's like your car continuing down the
road after the gas initially present is gone,"
Alexander said.
Plutonium counted
A 79-gram chunk of plutonium-beryl-lium
the size of a cigar serves as the
neutron source for Nebraska's reactor,
Alexander said.
He said the sale of plutonium and uran
ium is strictly controlled, and he must re
port the amount the university has to the
federal government every year.
Neutrons emitted from the radioac
tive plutonium strike the uranium rods,
splitting U-235 atoms into smaller atoms.
Most of the reactor's energy comes from
the kinetic energy of the newly-formed
smaller atoms, Alexander said.
The reactor "could last forever as little
as we use it," Alexander said. The pluton
ium in the reactor has a half life of 24,000
years-in other words, half of its atoms un
dergo radioactive decay every 24,000
years.
Alexander said the university's reactor
isn't dangerous, and described nuclear
power as dean, efficient, and cheap.
Energy source
While Alexander said there is no single
answer to America's fuel problems, he said
nuclear power should be developed.
"We need to use all our energy sources,"
Alexander said. "The U.S. has got to get
off its hind end and let us develop new
energy sources."
He said the cost of building nuclear
power plants Is higher than the cost of
building other plants, but nuclear fuel Is
more economic than coal and natural gas.
If properly used In a reactor, one pound
of uranium supplies as much power aj
1 .400 tons of coal, he said.
"Once the fuel is in the reactor, it can
operate for years," he said.
He also said that nuclear plants contain
all their wastes while coal plants Spew their
wastes into the atmosphere.
Kansas City art tour planned
A bus trip to the Nelson Art Gallery in
Kansas City is being sponsored April 12 by
the UNL Division of Continuing Studies
and International Educational Services.
Featured will be a tour of the French
Impressionism and Contemporary Art
Exhibit featuring the Monet Triptych
(Water Lillies), on special display.
Buses will leave Lincoln at 6:30 a.m.,
arrive in Kansas City at 10:30 a.m. and de
part at 7 pm. with an expected return time
of 11 pjn. Following the noon exhibit
tour, participants are free to continue their
tours individually or shop in nearby Coun
try Club Plaza.
Cost per person is $18 and does not in
clude meals.' For further information con
tact Christ a Joy, 345 Nebraska Union,
472-3264.
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