Question

Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow.

Mr. Ravi had been living in a small town with his family for many years. He decided to shift to a city when he learnt that a nuclear power plant would be built in his town. His son Prakash, who was a science teacher, did not agree with his father’s decision. Prakash explained to his father how mass defects during nuclear fission released energy. He assured his father that the authorities were taking all the possible safety measures to avoid any kind of nuclear mishap. Mr. Ravi understood the scientific explanation given by his son and decided not to shift to another place.

1. What is the cause of energy generation of a nuclear reactor during nuclear fission?
2. Write one nuclear reaction for nuclear fission that takes place in a nuclear reactor.
3. Give the formula for the energy generation that takes place in the nuclear reactor.

Answer 1

(i) Loss in mass (or mass defect) gets converted into energy according to the formula,

ΔE = (Δm)c²

ΔE is the energy produced, (Δm) is mass defect and c is the speed of light.

(ii) \[\ce{^235_92U + ^1_0n -> ^144_56Ba + ^89_36Kr + 3 ^1_0n + Energy}\]

(iii) ΔE =(Δm) c²

ΔE is energy produced, (Δm) is mass defect and c is the speed of light.