Chapter 983 Nuclear Age (5)

Looking at Yannick thinking about which city to drop the nuclear egg on, little Elizabeth asked reluctantly. "Brother Yannick, even if we drop leaflets in advance, there will be people staying in the city, right?"

Yannick nodded. "There are always some people who are lucky. Just like the last time our army bombed London, no one fled even though we broadcast the notice in advance, Churchill also said that no bomb would fall into the city of London. But I heard that since the fire in New York, most of the residents in these big cities have fled to the countryside, and there shouldn't be many people left."

Little Elizabeth hesitated and asked carefully. "Brother Yannick, those who stayed behind were killed by the bombing, don't you feel guilty?"

"What guilt?" Hearing this, Yannick couldn't help but laugh. "How much land did the British Empire colonize?" In the First World War, the Allied Powers led by Britain defeated the Central Powers led by Germany. After the war, Britain had the largest territory in the world, controlling an area of ​​40 million square kilometers, which is about 25% of the world's land area. The controlled population has reached 400 million, accounting for 25% of the world's population. "Do you think the people in these colonies are happy? Isn't it the same as sucking the blood and sweat of these people in the colonies for your royal family to eat and drink well? Do you feel guilty?" If he felt guilty, he would not bomb the US mainland day and night and turn the northeastern industrial zone of the United States into ruins.

"..." Little Elizabeth showed a trace of embarrassment on her face.

Yannick did not delve into this issue. "Even if those people were killed in the bombing, they can only blame their government. If those high-level officials surrendered obediently, they would not have died. We can also save a nuclear egg. How many kilowatt-hours of electricity can be generated with the saved raw materials." The content of uranium-235 in the nuclear fuel required for nuclear power plants is about 3%, while the content of uranium-235 in nuclear eggs is as high as more than 90%. The purification process in the middle can only be described as a lot of hardships.

Because the content of uranium-235 in the earth's natural uranium ore is only 715%, and the remaining more than 99% is uranium-238 that cannot be fissioned. To make an atomic egg, it is necessary to process pure uranium-235 with a content of up to 5%, which is extremely difficult. As an isotope, the chemical properties of uranium-238 are exactly the same as those of uranium-235. It is impossible to distinguish the two by any chemical means. They can only be separated and refined by centrifugation and diffusion methods based on the slight difference in their specific gravity.

To refine 1 kilogram of pure uranium-235, at least 200 tons of high-quality natural uranium ore are required, and tens of thousands of centrifuges are required to rotate day and night, consuming a lot of electricity and financial resources. Since the radiation of highly enriched uranium is already obvious, once the centrifuge is turned on, it cannot be repaired. If it breaks down in the middle, the raw materials inside will be wasted.

Hearing Yannick's words, little Elizabeth was shocked. "This bomb can also be used to generate electricity?!"

"It's not using bombs to generate electricity, but using the raw materials of bomb raw materials to generate electricity. Not only can it generate electricity, it has more advantages than thermal power generation." For example, the fuel cost of nuclear power plants is much lower than that of thermal power plants. For a 1 million kilowatt pressurized water reactor nuclear power plant, 40 tons of fuel need to be replenished every year, of which only 5 tons of uranium-235 are consumed, and the rest can be recovered. Therefore, fuel transportation is insignificant.

For a 1 million kilowatt coal-fired power plant, at least 2.12 million tons of standard coal are consumed every year. On average, one 10,000-ton ship or three 40-carriage trains are required to transport coal to the power plant every day. The heavy transportation burden can be imagined.

"It can also be used as ship power. The submarine that crossed the Arctic last time used nuclear power. Large aircraft carriers built in the future will all use nuclear power." Yannick briefly explained the working principle of nuclear power.

After listening, little Elizabeth looked curious. "Will all ships be equipped with nuclear power in the future?"

"That's not the case." There are very few nuclear-powered surface ships in later generations except for individual aircraft carriers. Although the United States and the Soviet Union built several nuclear-powered cruisers and missile destroyers during the Cold War; the United States even built a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier battle group, with the end of the Cold War, these warships were either retired or converted to conventional power. Only the Kirov-class cruiser has been in service until later generations.

The main advantage of nuclear power is that the range is unlimited, it can always maintain high-speed cruising, and there is sufficient power supply. But there is no shortage of fuel, and food and ammunition still have to be supplied from the outside, so why not replenish fuel at the same time? So the biggest advantage has been diluted, coupled with high maintenance costs, the cost-effectiveness is not good, and it is reasonable to be eliminated.

Nuclear-powered aircraft carriers are another case. The fuel space saved by nuclear power devices can accommodate more aircraft and aviation fuel. More importantly, the smoke duct facilities required for conventional power are omitted, and the layout of the entire hangar and deck will be more reasonable and tidy. At the same time, since there is no smoke pollution on the deck, it is also more conducive to aircraft take-off and landing and maintenance. Not to mention that the sufficient power provided by nuclear power makes steam catapults more efficient. Therefore, nuclear-powered aircraft carriers are obviously more cost-effective than conventional-powered aircraft carriers.

As for civil aviation ships, there are less than ten in the world. The reason is also that the cost-effectiveness is not cost-effective. Although nuclear power can save a lot of fuel money, the price of nuclear reactors is very expensive and is not affordable for ordinary people. Continued maintenance and upkeep also cost money; plus, once a malfunction causes nuclear fuel leakage, it will not only endanger the lives of the crew, but also cause serious marine pollution.

After thinking for a while, little Elizabeth asked again. "Can we build nuclear-powered aircraft and nuclear-powered tanks?"

Yannick couldn't help laughing. "Your imagination is pretty good."

Although it was a wild idea, the United States and the Soviet Union in the original time and space really launched nuclear-powered aircraft projects.

Also during the Cold War, the United States took the lead in completing the prototype of the B36 nuclear-powered bomber and successfully conducted its first test flight, while the Soviet Union's Tu-119 project lagged far behind and did not complete its first flight until several years later.

The test results proved that nuclear-powered aircraft are feasible. But every flight is not as easy as imagined. Every time they take off, both the crew members and the ground commanders are cautious and trembling. What if the plane accidentally breaks down? Although it is not as exaggerated as a nuclear bomb, it is also a huge flying dirty bomb, and the consequences of falling down are unimaginable. Therefore, every time the Soviet and American nuclear-powered bombers were tested, they would be followed by a transport plane full of paratroopers. Once the plane crashed, the paratroopers would immediately parachute and set up a quarantine zone on the ground to prevent unauthorized personnel from entering.

Later, with the development of intercontinental ballistic missile technology, the United States and the Soviet Union successively cancelled their nuclear-powered aircraft projects. After all, as long as the family presses the launch button, a nuclear strike can be easily achieved. It seems unnecessary to mobilize a large number of troops to fly over the enemy's airspace to drop nuclear bombs.