Finally, The Bataan Nuclear Power Plant!(BNPP)

The last 2 posts we've only been talking about half of our field trip, The Pawikan Conservation Center. Now, we will talk about the 2nd half, The Bataan Nuclear Power Plant! In this post, you will find several details about nuclear energy, its disadvantages and disadvantages, and what we learned from our tour guide. To start off, we'll first inform you a thing or two about nuclear energy and what it can do.
                                                               

Nuclear energy is the result of nuclear fission(splitting of uranium atoms). This is what is normally used to generate nuclear energy. There has been a lot of debate whether or not the Philippines should harness Nuclear Energy and use it for the benefit our country and we would like to put in our 2 cents on the topic. But first, let's list down the positive and negative effects of harnessing nuclear energy so we can have a better understanding of its effects.                             

  Positive effects:

   1. More efficient energy production
   2. Large capacity plants can be installed
   3. Energy Crisis can be controlled
   4. Less pollution compared to Thermal Power Plant
   5. does not require a lot of space
   6. Most concentrated form of energy

  Negative effects:
    1. Disposal of Nuclear Waste is a major problem
    2. Construction costs are very large
    3. Can damage aquatic life
    4. Risky, as leakage of Nuclear Fuel can be a danger
                                                             

 After all the effects of Nuclear Energy listed, our group would like to say that we support the harnessing of Nuclear Energy for the development of our country. There have been many times that an energy crisis has happened in the Philippines but if we had a Nuclear Power Plant, we would be able to control the energy crisis. Also, more efficient energy production means that there would be more energy to go around and this would keep our cities powered more than before and we're pretty sure that every civilian in the city would be happy of that. And if a Nuclear Power Plant makes less pollution than the Thermal Power Plant then that would be a great help to the environment. Despite all its risks, the rewards of using Nuclear Energy are huge and could last a lifetime, and if there were a saying to summarize how we feel about harnessing Nuclear Energy it would be "Go big or go home".
                                                         

                                                       

Since we never went to the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) before, we had several assumptions on what we would learn including the reason it was never activated, how it could make energy from its fuel and how its build keeps radiation from escaping the compound. Soon enough, we arrived at the BNPP. After greetings and introductions in the office, we were finally able to tour the actual structure. Our questions above were answered accordingly: 1. it was never activated because the Philippine Constitution states that we are not allowed to have any active nuclear power plants in the Phil. 2. as mentioned earlier, it makes energy from its fuel using nuclear fission, which is the splitting of 2 Uranium atoms. 3. its infrastructure is built in such a way(didn't say how)that the radiation goes into the power plant instead of out during a leak/meltdown.                                          

After the ft, we came together and discussed our favorite parts of the power plant:
Mass'- The storage room because that's where the mass is.
XRaps'- The reactor because it powers EVERYTHING.
IfFoundPlsReturn's- The control room because it's fun to flip switches and press buttons.    

Extra pictures:

 



Having a lecture as soon as we arrive at the Nuclear Power Plant....

A phone call away from talking to the Philippine President...

The control screen in the control room....

Going up the stairs....

The Reactor.......

And last but not least, the empty hallways of the Nuclear Power Plant.






Sources:
http://www.westinghousenuclear.com/community/WhatIsNuclearEnergy.shtm
http://www.cyberphysics.co.uk/topics/nuclear/advantages_disadvantages_nuclear_power.htm
trip chart