nuclear-news

Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant Containment Vessel Water Level Continues to Drop Due to Earthquake

February 23, 2021, 5:05 PM

Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) summarized the impact of the February 13 earthquake on the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant on February 22, and said that the water level in the containment vessel that houses the reactor continues to drop. The Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) has said that water injection is continuing and that there are no safety issues at present, but has called for tighter monitoring.

At the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, water is being injected to cool the melted down nuclear fuel, but the water level in the containment vessels of the Unit 1 and Unit 3 reactors has dropped by several dozen centimeters and has been on a downward trend ever since.

In addition, nitrogen has been injected into the containment vessel to prevent hydrogen explosions and increase the pressure, but in the Unit 1 reactor, the pressure gauge that measures the difference from atmospheric pressure has dropped from 1.2 kilopascals to 0.1 kilopascals and is now almost at atmospheric pressure.

The Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) says it will continue to monitor the water level and pressure, as it is possible that the earthquake may have caused damage that was created 10 years ago to spread, causing the water level and pressure to drop.

In addition to the above, it was also found that six tanks used to store water after treating contaminated water were displaced by up to 5 cm due to the earthquake.

The displacement was within the design assumptions, and no water leakage has occurred.

There was no change in the values of the monitoring posts after the quake, and there was no leakage of radioactive materials to the outside.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA), which received the report, said that cooling of the nuclear fuel and nitrogen injection are continuing and that there are no safety issues at present, and asked TEPCO to strengthen its monitoring.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20210223/k10012881251000.html?fbclid=IwAR0KDxC1FABC_SeNe3Sda6M55_WOvJxDE_UwBaODJls6oHlTgudC0-CHPhQ

February 25, 2021 - Posted by dunrenard | Fukushima 2021 | Fukushima Daiichi, Pressure drop, Water level