In a nuclear reactor,heavy nuclei are not use | vedclass

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(B) The moderator used in a nuclear reactor must have light nuclei (like protons or deuterium). When neutrons undergo a perfectly elastic collision wi

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elastic collision of neutrons with heavy nuclei will not slow them down

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(B) The moderator used in a nuclear reactor must have light nuclei (like protons or deuterium). When neutrons undergo a perfectly elastic collision with light nuclei,they transfer a significant portion of their kinetic energy to the nuclei,effectively slowing down the neutrons. In contrast,if neutrons collide with heavy nuclei,the mass of the heavy nucleus is much larger than that of the neutron. According to the laws of conservation of momentum and energy,in an elastic collision with a very heavy object,the velocity of the incident particle (neutron) remains nearly unchanged. Therefore,heavy nuclei cannot effectively slow down neutrons and are not suitable as moderators.

In a nuclear reactor,heavy nuclei are not used as moderators because:

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