Nuclear power creates electricity generated through the use of nuclear fission of uranium to heat to boil water and then drive turbine creating electricity. Nuclear power supplies the world with around 11% of its total electricity, with operation in 30 countries. The USA (33%) and France (17%) are the world's most dominant producers of nuclear power, with other notable producers including Canada, Russia, South Korea, Germany and China. See the data visualization in the link for more statistics on nuclear power in the world.
As indicated above, nuclear power is achieved by the use of a nuclear reactor in an external combustion engine, where the heat generated by fission produces steam which can spin turbines and run a generator. While there are many types of reactors and different nuclear reactions, the production of steam is common among all nuclear power plants. A few figure in the link shows a typical boiling water reactor power plant.
As of October 2018, 452 reactors are currently in operation within power plants, with 55 currently in construction. All power plants make use of uranium either on its own or in combination with its by-product plutonium for fuel, as uranium is relatively abundant and cheap, constituting only about 10% of the operating costs, where in natural gas plants, fuel costs may constitute about 60% of the operating costs, depending on how the accounting is configured. The potential use of thorium in the generation of nuclear power is being researched and in development around the world.....for the past 25 years.
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