by Blackrifle » Thu Apr 08, 2010 2:47 pm
LOL! I don't have my scientific calculator so I'll provide you an example of how nuclear fission is explained. The first neutron is a first generation neutron. This can release between 2-3 more neutrons, depending on the way in which the uranium nucleus splits. We will assume that about 2.5 neutrons are released during each fissioning. Those 2.5 neutrons are second generation neutrons. Then, those 2.5 second generation neutrons prompt the fissioning of more uranium, producing approximately 2.5 third generation neutrons, for each second generation neutron. So, the total number of neutrons in the third generation is now: 2.5 x 2.5, or 6.25 neutrons. In a nuclear reactor, there is approximately 1 millisecond between each generation. So, what does this mean? It means that every millisecond, the number of neutrons increases 2.5 times. So, if at time 0, there are 5 neutrons present, 10 milliseconds later, there are 5x 2.5 10th =47,683.7158, or about 47,700 neutrons.