How does a capacitor work in a nuclear power plant?

A nuclear power plant is a thermal power plant in which a fissile fuel is used to generate electricity with a water-steam cycle.

Depending on the type of technology, the reactor produces the water vapour in the reactor in one way or another, however, the turbine-alternator-transformer and condenser part is common to all models.

What is it?

It is a heat exchanger formed by a set of tubes through which the cooling water circulates.

The water vapour entering the condenser from the turbine is liquefied to a liquid phase, thus improving turbine performance as the conversion produces a vacuum.

What is its function?

As the name suggests, condensing the steam coming from the turbine for its return to the water/steam cycle. To do this, an external cooling circuit using a large flow of water circulating inside the condenser tubes transports the unusable energy to the power plant's carbon sink (river, reservoir, sea, or cooling towers).

The steam that condenses in contact with the condenser tubes is pumped by the condensate pumps and feed water to be preheated before being sent to the steam generators.

The pressure in the condenser is lower than that of the external cooling circuit, so that in the event of a leak in the tubes it is the water from the external cooling circuit that enters the condenser, thus avoiding possible leaks into the environment.