How is nuclear fission different from nuclear fusion?

Differences in fission and fusion Fastern your seatbelt. We've got some ground to cover. But it won't be too difficult to grasp the fundamentals.In either fission or fussion, we are taking about nuclear processes, i.e.

, the physics of nuclear structure and construction/destruction of that nucleus. The big difference is fusion is the "building" of atomic nuclei, and fission is the "breaking" or "splitting" of atomic nuclei Fusion is the bonding of atomic nuclei or nuclear particles (nucleons - protons and neutrons) to make "bigger" or "heavier" atomic nuclei. Fission, on the other hand is the splitting of the atom.

As the atoms fuse or split they release energy. Lots of it. And most of it is heat energy.

In nuclear weapons, the energy is released "all at once" to create a blast. If the energy is released in a "controlled" way, we can release heat at a "useable" rate and apply it to boiling water to make steam In fusion, protons or neutrons or the nuclei of atoms are forced together and are fused to make a new atomic nucleus. The release of lots and lots of energy accompanies this reaction.

That's what powers stars. Currently we can't really do any fusion reactions to make useful power. There are a few agencies working on fusion devices, but the high temperatures required to attain fusion require very special materials and controls.

The current "state of the art" fusion facility is the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (and a link is provided). Fusion is unlikely to become a useful source of power for many years. But what about fission?

Nuclear fission involves the splitting of large atoms, usually uranium (or sometimes plutonium). When large atoms fission they produce two smaller atoms or fission fragments (and a couple of neutrons and lots of energy). The total mass of the products is less than the mass of the original atom.

This mass difference is turned into energy in accordance with the Einstein equation E=mc 2 Most of the energy appears in the recoil of the fission fragments, and the heat that is generated is considerable. It is that heat that we capture to turn water into steam to generate electricity Answer Nuclear Fission: Basics When a nucleus fissions, it splits into several smaller fragments. These fragments, or fission products, are about equal to half the original mass.

Two or three neutrons are also emitted Nuclear Fission The sum of the masses of these fragments is less than the original mass. This 'missing' mass (about 0.1 percent of the original mass) has been converted into energy according to Einstein's equation Fission can occur when a nucleus of a heavy atom captures a neutron, or it can happen spontaneously Nuclear Fusion Nuclear Fusion Nuclear energy can also be released by fusion of two light elements (elements with low atomic numbers). The power that fuels the sun and the stars is nuclear fusion.

In a hydrogen bomb, two isotopes of hydrogen, deuterium and tritium are fused to form a nucleus of helium and a neutron. This fusion releases 17.6 MeV of energy. Unlike nuclear fission, there is no limit on the amount of the fusion that can occur Difference between fusion and fission Nuclear fusion is taking two different atoms and combining them in to one atom, while nuclear fission takes one atom and seperates it into two atoms Fission and fusion Fission is splitting the atom, and fusion is combining two or more atoms into one atom.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.