‘U.S. Sees Array of New Threats at Japan’s Nuclear Plant’; But It Might Be Worse Than That
April 6th, 2011The New York Times piece below states:
…the engineers who prepared the document do not believe that a resumption of criticality is an immediate likelihood, Neil Wilmshurst, vice president of the nuclear sector at the Electric Power Research Institute, said when contacted about the document. “I have seen no data to suggest that there is criticality ongoing,” said Mr. Wilmshurst, who was involved in the assessment.
But look at this video by Arnold Gundersen of Fairewinds Associates:
Recent press reports have discussed the possibility that Fukushima Unit 1 may be having a nuclear chain reaction. New data released by TEPCO indicates that even though Fukushima Unit 1 was shut down during the March 11 earthquake, it appears to have “gone critical” again without human intervention. The detection by TEPCO of short-lived radioactive isotopes substantiates the existence of this inadvertent criticality.
Newly released TEPCO data provides evidence of periodic chain reaction at Fukushima Unit 1 from Fairewinds Associates on Vimeo.
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Via: New York Times:
United States government engineers sent to help with the crisis in Japan are warning that the troubled nuclear plant there is facing a wide array of fresh threats that could persist indefinitely, and that in some cases are expected to increase as a result of the very measures being taken to keep the plant stable, according to a confidential assessment prepared by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Among the new threats that were cited in the assessment, dated March 26, are the mounting stresses placed on the containment structures as they fill with radioactive cooling water, making them more vulnerable to rupture in one of the aftershocks rattling the site after the earthquake and tsunami of March 11. The document also cites the possibility of explosions inside the containment structures due to the release of hydrogen and oxygen from seawater pumped into the reactors, and offers new details on how semimolten fuel rods and salt buildup are impeding the flow of fresh water meant to cool the nuclear cores.
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The document, which was obtained by The New York Times, provides a more detailed technical assessment than Japanese officials have provided of the conundrum facing the Japanese as they struggle to prevent more fuel melting at the Fukushima Daiichi plant. But it appears to rely largely on data shared with American experts by the Japanese.
Among other problems, the document raises new questions about whether pouring water on nuclear fuel in the absence of functioning cooling systems can be sustained indefinitely. Experts have said the Japanese need to continue to keep the fuel cool for many months until the plant can be stabilized, but there is growing awareness that the risks of pumping water on the fuel present a whole new category of challenges that the nuclear industry is only beginning to comprehend.
The document also suggests that fragments or particles of nuclear fuel from spent fuel pools above the reactors were blown “up to one mile from the units,” and that pieces of highly radioactive material fell between two units and had to be “bulldozed over,” presumably to protect workers at the site. The ejection of nuclear material, which may have occurred during one of the earlier hydrogen explosions, may indicate more extensive damage to the extremely radioactive pools than previously disclosed.
I would be curious to see picture of the plant taken when it’s dark. If spent fuel rods have been blown out of their pool (wich I don’t doubt is the case), then we might be able to see them glowing in the dark (due to Cherenkov radiation).
There is a report of “Flashing Blue Light Seen Above Exploded Nuclear Reactor” here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nr4Oe6bEraI
but It’s posted on april first and it’s FOx News so I’m not sure if I can beleive them or not.
there was quite a bit of discussion on the latest Fukushima thread at theoildrum.com, and i guess that they have started discussing this NYT piece by now too.
sorry, i meant discussion at theoildrum on the Gundersen video…
I watched all of Mr. Gunderson’s videos. He is such a calm avuncular fellow. I like him. I think he is giving us such good information (I guess). I made the mistake of reading all of the comments that followed. I was wondering if I was living through the Gulf Oil Spill again, but this time with nuclear attached.
Has anyone besides me been drinking red wine HEAVILY lately? A bottle a night here. Seriously, and I don’t even get drunk on it. I even bought a book on how nutrition can cure alcoholism. I am beyond being able to absorb much more of the Japan information. I read somewhere today in one village that 850 bodies were found in the tops of trees in a village. Its almost like a bad trip on a farmacutical drug. Am I ever going to wake up to a day where I don’t feel the pain in the world around and beyond me so acutely?
Caring for my mother all those years taught me something about the will to live. I don’t think it matters what the thing is you are pushing yourself up against: stroke, congestive heart failure, paralysis, inability to speak, oil in the Gulf, nuclear in the Pacific, ad naseum. I think when you want to live life abundantly and enjoy it despite the obstacles you will find a way. But this nuclear stuff is beyond my ken, and I am truly scared for the people. I don’t know how to push back against this.
But back to my Mom again. Managing fear, talking to it, calming it down is very healing. I liked Mr. Gunderson because he talked about nuclear energy as an educator. While we might all be flucked at least he will teach us why that is so.
Beam me up Scotty.