A British Thermal Unit, or BTU, is the amount of heat required to raise one pound of what material one degree Fahrenheit?

Q-1: A British Thermal Unit, or BTU, is the amount of heat required to raise one pound of what material one degree Fahrenheit?

ANSWER: WATER

Q-2:  For which of the following reasons is plutonium-238 used for generating electricity on spacecraft?

1) It is an alpha emitter with long half-life.
2) It is a beta emitter with high specific power.
3) It occurs abundantly in nature.
4) It has low specific power.
ANSWER: 1 -- IT IS AN ALPHA EMITTER WITH LONG HALF-LIFE.

Q-3: Enrichment of uranium by gaseous diffusion relies on the fact that uranium-235 diffuses through holes in the barriers more readily than uranium-238 does because uranium-235 is:

1) a different chemical compound.
2) a different wavelength.
3) resistant to magnetism.
4) slightly lighter than uranium-238.
ANSWER: 4 -- SLIGHTLY LIGHTER THAN URANIUM-238.

Q-4: In a light-water reactor, the coolant is ordinary water. What is the moderator?

ANSWER: WATER or THE SAME WATER

Q-5:  Of the following, which non-fissioning element is used in the cooling water of nuclear power plants to help control the rate of the fission reaction by absorbing neutrons:

1) zirconium
2) boron
3) krypton
4) cesium
ANSWER: 2 -- BORON

Q-6:  The part of a nuclear power plant that prevents thermal pollution of lakes or rivers is the:

1) reactor
2) coolant/moderator
3) cooling tower
4) control rod
ANSWER: 2 -- COOLING TOWER

Q-7:  The form of the fuel in U.S. commercial nuclear power plants is which of the following:

1) uranium oxide ceramic pellets
2) atomic vapor
3) uranium metal tubes
4) uranium solution in water
ANSWER: 1 -- URANIUM OXIDE CERAMIC PELLETS

Q-8: Which of the following is NEVER used as a coolant in nuclear reactors:

1) liquid nitrogen
2) liquid sodium
3) water
4) helium gas
ANSWER: 1 -- LIQUID NITROGEN

Q-9:  In a breeder reactor, new fuel is formed as non-fuel uranium-238 absorbs a neutron and ultimately becomes which of the following fissionable atoms:

1) uranium-235
2) plutonium-239
3) uranium-239
4) neptunium-239
ANSWER: 2 -- PLUTONIUM-239