Do nuclear power plants follow the first and second law of thermodynamics?

Question

Samuel Albin · Accepted Answer

The answer is #"my word...."#

The laws of thermodynamics apply to all chemical and physical processes; you must review the definitions in your text.

In layman's terms, the first law states that "you can't win" and the second that "you can't break even either..."

In a nuclear power station, electricity is provided in the same way as fossil fuel-powered power stations....water is heated to give steam, the which drives a turbine, and electricity is generated. However, here, there is some conversion of the mass of #""^235U# to energy, and of course here Einstein's famous equation operates....#E=mc^2#...

#""_92^235U +1*"neutron"rarr""# #""_56^141Ba+# #""_36^92Kr+3*"neutrons"+Delta#

Olivia Akins · Answer

undefined Yes, nuclear power plants follow the first and second laws of thermodynamics. The first law, also known as the law of energy conservation, states that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transformed from one form to another. Nuclear power plants convert nuclear energy, released from nuclear reactions, into thermal energy, which is then used to generate electricity. The second law of thermodynamics states that the entropy of a closed system tends to increase over time. In nuclear power plants, entropy increases as heat is transferred from the reactor to the surroundings and converted into work to produce electricity.