Question

Nuclear fusion produces more energy than nuclear fission, but requires more initial energy.


Please select the best answer from the choices provided

True or False

Answer 1

True.

Fusion of light nuclei releases more energy per nucleon (and per kg of fuel) than fission, but it requires much higher temperatures/pressures (or an energetic trigger) to overcome the Coulomb barrier and initiate the reaction. Practical human-made fusion currently needs more initial input energy than fission to get and sustain the reaction.