Data Points to Reactor Fuel Breakdown in Japan: Report
Wednesday, May 18, 2011| photo courtesy of: browzz.com |
Newly disclosed information indicates that nuclear fuel has fully melted inside the No. 2 and No. 3 reactors of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan, the Asahi Shimbun reported on Wednesday (see GSN, May 17).
The six-reactor Fukushima facility was severely damaged in the March 11 earthquake and tsunami that left more than 20,000 people dead or missing in Japan.
Plant operator Tokyo Electric Power's blueprint for stabilizing the plant is rooted partly in the belief that fuel in several site reactors had not completely heated to the point of losing its shape, according to the newspaper. Data released on Monday, though, indicates water pressure in the reactors dropped on March 15 and 16 -- seemingly due to ruptures in the internal pressure vessels of both systems.
The discovery of technetium and other radioactive contaminants in fluid at the No. 3 reactor site supports the view that overheated nuclear material had produced openings in the system's inner container (Asahi Shimbun I, May 18). Melted fuel is also likely responsible for openings in the No. 2 reactor's pressure vessel (Hidenori Tsuboya, Asahi Shimbun II, May 18) Full article
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