Nuclear Fission

Nuclear power plants operate in much the same way as other power plants: Water is heated and turned into steam using a fuel source, and in turn the steam drives a turbine that produces electricity.

In conventional power plants, the fuel is often coal, natural gas or oil. Burning those fuels causes air pollution such as carbon, sulfur and nitrogen oxides.

In a nuclear power plant, the fuel is uranium, and instead of burning it, we use a process called "nuclear fission"— splitting one atom into two. When a uranium atom is split, it expels neutrons, producing the heat required to generate steam.

Using that steam, FPL's nuclear power plants are able to create enough emissions-free, reliable power for nearly 1.9 million Florida homes.