Nuclear Fission and Nuclear Fusion: Source of Energy

Nuclear fission is a process

Nuclear fission is a process in which a heavy nucleus, after capturing a thermal neutron, splits into two lighter nuclei of comparable masses. The pro

U

U-235 is fissionable by slow or thermal neutrons, while U-238 can be fissioned only by fast neutrons above 1 MeV. Natural uranium contains only 0.7% U

A typical U

A typical U-235 fission releases about 200 MeV. The energy comes from the fact that fission fragments have greater binding energy per nucleon than the

Neutrons released in one fission can

Neutrons released in one fission can cause further fissions. If the process continues, a chain reaction is formed. The reaction may be uncontrolled, c

K is the ratio of

K is the ratio of the number of neutrons present at the beginning of the present generation to the number present at the beginning of the previous gen