Consuming one gram of uranium yields a thermal energy output roughly equivalent to____________________?
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Answer: B. 4.5 tonnes of high grade coal
Explanation
Nuclear reactions involve mass-energy conversions that release millions of times more energy than chemical combustion. Consuming a single gram of uranium through complete fission yields an enormous amount of thermal energy. This energy output equals the thermal energy produced by burning approximately 4.5 tonnes of coal. Coal combustion relies on chemical reactions involving electron bond rearrangements between carbon and oxygen. Nuclear fission alters the strong nuclear force bindings within heavy atomic nuclei to release energy. One gram of uranium-235 contains roughly twenty-four thousand kilowatt-hours of potential thermal energy.
This extreme energy density makes nuclear power vastly more compact than fossil fuel power plants. Nuclear facilities require minuscule fuel volumes compared to trainloads of coal required daily. Energy economics heavily favor nuclear fuel transport due to this incredible mass-to-energy ratio. Option A significantly underestimates the massive energy advantage of nuclear fuel over coal. Option C, D, and E overestimate the equivalent coal tonnage relative to standard uranium fission yields. id
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- Engineering
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- Mechanical Engineering
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- Difficulty
- medium
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