'Fission' scare hits Japan nuke plant
Source: Agencies |
November 3, 2011, Thursday
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RADIOACTIVE particles associated with nuclear fission have been detected at Japan's tsunami-damaged atomic power plant, officials said yesterday, suggesting one of its reactors could have a new problem.
The fresh concerns at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear facility came as a reactor in southern Japan was restarted and brought back online, marking a first since the March 11 disaster created an outcry over the safety of nuclear plant sites.
Utility officials said gas from inside the Fukushima plant's No. 2 reactor indicated the presence of radioactive xenon, which could be the byproduct of unexpected nuclear fission. Boric acid was injected through a cooling pipe as a precaution because it can counteract nuclear reactions.
Tokyo Electric Power Co, or TEPCO, said there was no rise in the reactor's temperature or pressure. The company said the radioactive materials had not reached the point when nuclear reactions are self-sustaining and the detection of the xenon would have no major impact on workers' efforts to keep the reactor cool and stable.
Because the half-life of the isotopes detected is short, the xenon was likely created recently. But officials said the level was so low that further tests would be required to confirm the measurements were not an error. TEPCO spokesman Osamu Yokokura said no radiation leaks outside the plant were detected.
The plant is the site of the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl in 1986. A 20-kilometer exclusion zone has been in effect since the earthquake and tsunami crippled the facility northeast of Tokyo, sending three of its reactors into meltdowns, touching off fires and triggering several explosions.
TEPCO had reported significant progress toward stabilizing the facility, saying that it has essentially reached a "cold shutdown," meaning the temperatures at the reactors are constant and controlled.
Even so, a government panel says it will take at least 30 years to safely decommission the facility.
The Fukushima disaster has severely impacted Japan's nuclear power supply. Forty-three of its 54 reactors are now suspended for inspections or mechanical troubles and public opposition to restarting them since the disaster has cast doubts on the nation's overall nuclear future.
Before the tsunami, Japan relied on nuclear power for about one-third of its electricity. If power companies cannot win local approval, which is required to restart reactors, all plants could be offline by next May.
But, in a first since the disaster, a nuclear reactor in southern Japan has resumed operation after a monthlong shutdown for a technical problem.
The Kyushu Electric Power Co says No. 4 reactor at the Genkai nuclear power plant restarted late on Tuesday and was generating electricity yesterday. It automatically shut down on October 4 following an abnormality in a steam condenser.
The fresh concerns at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear facility came as a reactor in southern Japan was restarted and brought back online, marking a first since the March 11 disaster created an outcry over the safety of nuclear plant sites.
Utility officials said gas from inside the Fukushima plant's No. 2 reactor indicated the presence of radioactive xenon, which could be the byproduct of unexpected nuclear fission. Boric acid was injected through a cooling pipe as a precaution because it can counteract nuclear reactions.
Tokyo Electric Power Co, or TEPCO, said there was no rise in the reactor's temperature or pressure. The company said the radioactive materials had not reached the point when nuclear reactions are self-sustaining and the detection of the xenon would have no major impact on workers' efforts to keep the reactor cool and stable.
Because the half-life of the isotopes detected is short, the xenon was likely created recently. But officials said the level was so low that further tests would be required to confirm the measurements were not an error. TEPCO spokesman Osamu Yokokura said no radiation leaks outside the plant were detected.
The plant is the site of the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl in 1986. A 20-kilometer exclusion zone has been in effect since the earthquake and tsunami crippled the facility northeast of Tokyo, sending three of its reactors into meltdowns, touching off fires and triggering several explosions.
TEPCO had reported significant progress toward stabilizing the facility, saying that it has essentially reached a "cold shutdown," meaning the temperatures at the reactors are constant and controlled.
Even so, a government panel says it will take at least 30 years to safely decommission the facility.
The Fukushima disaster has severely impacted Japan's nuclear power supply. Forty-three of its 54 reactors are now suspended for inspections or mechanical troubles and public opposition to restarting them since the disaster has cast doubts on the nation's overall nuclear future.
Before the tsunami, Japan relied on nuclear power for about one-third of its electricity. If power companies cannot win local approval, which is required to restart reactors, all plants could be offline by next May.
But, in a first since the disaster, a nuclear reactor in southern Japan has resumed operation after a monthlong shutdown for a technical problem.
The Kyushu Electric Power Co says No. 4 reactor at the Genkai nuclear power plant restarted late on Tuesday and was generating electricity yesterday. It automatically shut down on October 4 following an abnormality in a steam condenser.
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