Nuclear Physics, Nuclear Energy

& Survival of Planet Earth

Dinesh Srivastava
Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre
Kolkata 700 064

Guru Govind Singh Indraprastha University,

April 2009.
 Earth is a very special planet

 The sun is a long-lived,

stable star.

 Earth is at ideal distance

from the sun.

 Atmosphere & water.

 Asteroid impact created
the moon, and set it
rotating on its axis.

 Another asteroid killed

dinosaurs, making room
for mammals.
 India and Himalaya
• The Geology of the
Himalaya is a record of the
most dramatic and visible
creations of modern plate
tectonic forces.
• The Himalayas, which
stretch over 2400 km, are
the result of an ongoing
collision between two
continental tectonic plates.
• The Himalayas are still
growing at the rate of
1cm/year.
Variation of Radon-222 emission during 16-21 December 2004 at Bakreswar,
before tsunami, hit Southern Asia, Das et al, Current Science 89 (2005) 1399.
 n
m e,ν
m = 0.18% e

Free neutron decays with 15 minutes half-life.

Neutrons bound in atomic nuclei can be stable.

If the neutron were only 0.15% lighter or 0.3% heavier, the

stability and abundance of nuclei would be seriously affected.
However, there are no stable elements having A=5 or 8.
 Life is carbon (12 C) based.
12
C is produced in stars:
8
Be 12
C* 12
C
4
He

4
He
+ γ -ray
4
He

Fusion process needs a resonance in 12 C at 7.65 MeV. Requires

fine-tuning of nuclear force to within (± )4%. First postulated by
Sir Fred Hoyle to overcome gaps in periodic table at A=5 and 8.
Ra
di
oa
ct
ive
D ec
a yo
fU
ra
ni
um
 The Magnetic Field of the Earth
• The Earth's magnetic field is shaped roughly as a
magnetic dipole, with the poles currently located close to the
planet's geographic poles.

• The field is generated within the molten outer core region

where heat creates convection motions of conducting
materials, generating electric currents. These in turn
produce the Earth's magnetic field.

• The field forms the magnetosphere, which deflects particles

in the solar wind.

• Once the core gets cold, due to burn-up of nuclear fuel, this
magnetic field will vanish, exposing earth to radiations!
 Earth’s Magnetic Field Saves
us from Cosmic Rays

A cosmic ray approaching earth first

encounters its magnetic field, which
repels it all together or deflects it.

As the core of the earth gets cooler due to reducing radioactivity, this protecting
shield will vanish!
 The Green House Effect

•Without this heat-retention effect, the average surface temperature would be

−18 °C and life would perhaps not exist.
ses up to 14 litres/100 km of oil and runs about 20,000 km/year

the density of oil as about 1 kg/litre, this would produce

0x(14/100)x(44/16) =7700 kg of CO2/year.

were 250 million cars in USA alone in 2004 ( 12 million in 1960),

to emission of 1925 million tonnes of CO2. USA has about 1/3 of
cars in the world, so, the annual emission in 2004 was about
illion tonnes In 2004. It is rising at the rate of 2.5% per year.

al emission in 2007 was about 28,000 million tonnes in 2007!

an average family of 4 could produce up to 254 tonnes of CO2/pe

ou calculate the food, heating, electricity, cars etc.

eed about 100 medium size trees/month to convert this into oxy
acre of forest.

cover is decreasing at the alarming rate of 10% per year.

 The snout of the glacier at Gaumukh from where the Bhagirathi
emerges: Glaciers in the Himalayas are receding faster than in any
other part of the world and, if the present rate continues, they may
disappear by the year 2035.
Global Warming: Ignore at Your
Own Peril

The Antarctic is
( Base 1956). no loger cold.
Heating of the World
 The Nobel Peace Prize 2007

Nobel Peace Prize for 2007 was shared, in two equal parts,
between the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC) and Albert Arnold (Al) Gore Jr. for their efforts to
build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made
climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures
that are needed to counteract such change.
Carbon Capture & Storage
1. Existing oil and gas fields: enhance yield by exerting pressure
2. Depleted oil and gas fields
3. Deep saline geological formations: carbon dioxide dissolves in
saline water and forms carbonate
Life expectancy at birth
The Human Development Index; combines normalized
measures of life expectancy, literacy, educational attainment,
and GDP per capita for countries worldwide.
Population Map of the World
Fossil fuels lead to global warming and
also release radioactivity in the air.
A 1300 MW thermal power station will use 4.6
million tonnes of coal per year and produce :
• 14.5 million tonnes of CO2
• 1.3 million tonnes of ash
• 650,000 tonnes of gypsum
• 27000 tonnes of sludge
• 38000 tonnes of nitrous oxide
• 23000 tonnes of sulphur dioxide
• 1300 tonnes of particulate matter
• 6.5 tonnes of uranium!
 A large
bout 70 years’ nuclear power
f low cost U-235. Natural Uranium: station with a
99.2 % U-238 net electrical
capacity of
Up to 5 billion years 0.7 % U-235 1300 MW
f U-238 in fast requires
reeder reactors. Low Enriched Uranium about
25,000 kg
(Reactor Grade) of Low
ast resources of 3-4 % U-235 Enriched
Uranium
h-232, which can annually
Highly Enriched Uranium
e bred into U-233. with a 235U
(Weapons Grade) concentration
90 % U-235 of 3.75%.
usion reactors.
Nuclear energy, thus, is
greenest source of
energy. Solutions in sight
 Three Stage Nuclear Power
Programme of India

All the three stages are in operation at Kalpakkam- MAPS, FBTR, and Kamini.
 The future of Earth

•The future of the planet is closely tied to that of the Sun. As a

result of the steady accumulation of helium ash at the Sun's core,
the star's luminosity will increase, leading to loss of oceans.

•But even if the Sun were eternal and stable, the continued
internal cooling of the Earth would result in a loss of much of its
atmosphere and oceans (due to lower volcanism). After another
billion years the surface water will completely disappear.

•The Sun, as part of its solar lifespan, will expand to a red giant in
about 5 Gyr. It will expand out to about 99% of the distance to
the Earth's present orbit and most (if not all) existing life will be
Our search for life in the solar system
• We have learned a great deal about the earliest life here on
Earth

• All the planets in our own solar system have been explored by
spacecraft

• We have collected rocks from the Moon

• We have meteorites from Mars

• The climates and habitability of many of the other planets is

now understood at some level

• We have started discovering planets around other stars

• We have found that life thrives in places once thought to be

inhospitable.
 Chandrayaan-1 Mission Phase
LOI

SUN OPL.
ETO: 240 X 1,00,000 km ORBIT
CAPTURE
ORBIT
MCC

GTO: 240 X 36,000

MCC Km
00
0
8 6,
3 ,
X
40
T:2
LT

PERIGEE MANEUVERS PROGRESS OF MOON IN ITS ORBIT

Career with Department of Atomic Energy

For young men and women:

•Who like challenges in frontline science and

technology

•Who like to be a part of expanding programme

of nuclear reactors, accelerators, and fuel cycle
technologies

•Who enjoy pursuing innovative research in

Physics, Chemistry, Engineering, or Biosciences
Career with Department of Atomic Energy

OCES: One year Orientation Course for Engineering

graduates and Science post graduates starting in
September every year at BARC Training Schools at

•Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai

• Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research,
Kalpakkam
•Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology,
Indore
• Nuclear Fuel Complex, Hyderabad.
•Nuclear Training Centres at Kaiga, Kalpakkam,
Kudankulam, Rawatbhata, and Tarapur.
On successful completion of training, you will be
appointed as a Scientific Officer in any of the
DAE units with opportunities for attractive career
progression up to the highest echelons.

Successful completion of course work at the

Training School will entitle trainees to Post-
Graduate Diploma and also earn them credits
towards MTech/ MPhil/ PhD of Homi Bhabha
National Institute, provided their performance is
above a specified threshold.

Do not forget that the construction of nuclear

reactors will be done by industry.
DGFS:
Two year DAE Graduate Fellowship
Scheme for Engineering Graduates and
Post-Graduates in Physics for joining M
Tech Course in specified specialisations
starting in July every year at IIT Bombay,
Delhi, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Madras, and
Roorkee.

You will be absorbed in DAE after this.

Ph. D. Programme of
Homi Bhabha National Institute
(Deemed University).

JEST or GATE or NET & Interview

Join for Ph. D. at BARC, VECC, IGCAR,

RRCAT, IPR, IMsc, IOP, SINP
in

Physics,
Chemistry,
Life Sciences,
Strategic Studies,
Mathematics,
Engineering (all branches).
Diploma in Radiation Protection:

Graduates in Physics or Chemistry.

One year course.

Measure, certify, control, advise, plan

usage of radiation in hospitals, reactors,
nuclear laboratories,
Industry….

You can not have radiation using equipments (even

X-rays), till it is certified by Atomic Energy
Regulatory Board, an autonomous body.
And finally, K. S. Krishanan Research Associate-ship
Scheme

Ph. D in Physics, Chemistry, Life Sciences, and Engineering

Or
M. Tech + 2 years of experience:

Most remunerative Post Doctoral Fellowship Scheme in

the country.

After 1 year you would be absorbed as Scientific Officer (D)

with up to 5 increments or even Scientific Officer (E)
depending on your performance

You can play a crucial role in bringing prosperity and

security to 110 crore people and transform India for ever.

Welcome.
“There are two possibilities: either we are alone, or
we are not. Both are equally frightening”- Isaac
Asimov
Why should we care about life in the universe? This is one of the most profound
issues facing humankind.

•
if even the most rudimentary life form (like microbes) can be found elsewhere in
our universe the chances of life being common everywhere in the universe are
dramatically increased.

• discovery of intelligent life would alter our place in the cosmos forever.

• The new science of astrobiology has become a major research effort in the last
few years. It will likely play increasing role in pure astronomy and biology
research.

• If we better understand what conditions life requires (and how rare these may be)
maybe we will become better stewards of our own planet.
Your generation will be the first to fully explore these
possibilities, this might be your generation's greatest
legacy.