What makes modern nuclear reactors so safe comparatively to historical reactors?
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A nuclear reactor exists to generate heat. By placing a bunch of nuclear fuel close together, a lot of energy is released. In a nuclear power plant, the heat is used to create electricity – the heat created by the nuclear reaction is used to boil water, which turns into steam. The steam spins a turbine connected to a generator.
Running a nuclear power plant is about keeping the reactor hot enough for power generation, while also keeping the reactor cool enough to prevent overheating. Basically, it’s a balancing act to keep the reactor within operating temperature.
**Old nuclear power plants required supporting systems to cool the reactor. Basically, the systems that controlled the reactor keep it from overheating. If the supporting systems fail, the reactor overheats.** This may lead to a situation where radioactive material is released to the environment. This type of problem happened at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. The systems used to cool the reactors failed, which lead to three reactors overheating.
**New nuclear power plants require supporting systems to keep the reactor running. Basically, the systems that control the reactor keep it working. If the supporting systems fail, the reactor stops by itself.** The reactor immediately goes cold and the plant shuts down, but no danger.
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