More water leaks have been found at the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
Tokyo Electric Power Company told reporters on Monday morning that it has discovered 2 additional water leaks at the nuclear plant.
This comes after it was announced on Sunday that nearly 8 tons of water was found to have leaked in 14 locations at the plant.
One of the 2 new findings involves about 30 liters of water that has leaked from a device that is removing salt from contaminated water. The other leak is from a valve of a pipe that is injecting water into a reactor.
TEPCO says leaked water has neither spilled out of the plant, nor flowed into the sea.
The utility firm is trying to determine whether water in some of the pipes froze and cracked the pipes, or loosened the pipes' connections.
It plans to quickly implement preventive measures, including carrying out more patrols early in the morning and wrapping insulation around the pipes and other equipment.
The temperature on Monday morning around the plant dropped to minus 8.7 degrees Celsius.
ラベル Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant の投稿を表示しています。 すべての投稿を表示
ラベル Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant の投稿を表示しています。 すべての投稿を表示
2012年1月30日月曜日
2011年12月3日土曜日
TEPCO issues interim report on Fukushima accident
The Tokyo Electric Power Company has released an interim report on its in-house probe into the nuclear disaster at the firm's Fukushima Daiichi power plant.
But the report issued on Friday fails to clarify how or why a huge amount of radioactive materials leaked outside the facility.
Based on data and interviews of more than 250 workers since June, the report describes how the giant tsunami on March 11th knocked out almost all of the plant's power sources and all of its fail-safe mechanisms. The report also details how meltdowns occurred at some of the plant's reactors after the accident.
The report says the firm had worked with the government and obtained its endorsement in taking measures to guard the plant from severe accidents before March 11th.
The report also defends as reasonable the utility's effort to contain the damage from the accident.
The report says that the plant lost all of its safety mechanisms because the tsunami was much larger than expected, that workers could not keep up with developments, and that core meltdowns occurred.
The report calls for thorough steps to protect the cooling and power systems of power plants from tsunamis and for installation of an emergency power source in a safe place.
The report calls on the utility to ensure that it has ways to cool reactors in case of further accidents.
The report does not contain an in-depth examination of the utility's failure to immediately submit to the government the firm's 2008 estimate that a tsunami higher than 10 meters could hit the plant. The utility has said it did not submit the estimate immediately because it was based on a groundless hypothesis. The firm eventually submitted the estimate only 4 days before the March 11th disaster.
Much remains unknown about how workers tried to cool the plant's Number 1 reactor -- where a meltdown occurred -- or why the Number 2 reactor ended up releasing a large amount of radioactive materials
But the report issued on Friday fails to clarify how or why a huge amount of radioactive materials leaked outside the facility.
Based on data and interviews of more than 250 workers since June, the report describes how the giant tsunami on March 11th knocked out almost all of the plant's power sources and all of its fail-safe mechanisms. The report also details how meltdowns occurred at some of the plant's reactors after the accident.
The report says the firm had worked with the government and obtained its endorsement in taking measures to guard the plant from severe accidents before March 11th.
The report also defends as reasonable the utility's effort to contain the damage from the accident.
The report says that the plant lost all of its safety mechanisms because the tsunami was much larger than expected, that workers could not keep up with developments, and that core meltdowns occurred.
The report calls for thorough steps to protect the cooling and power systems of power plants from tsunamis and for installation of an emergency power source in a safe place.
The report calls on the utility to ensure that it has ways to cool reactors in case of further accidents.
The report does not contain an in-depth examination of the utility's failure to immediately submit to the government the firm's 2008 estimate that a tsunami higher than 10 meters could hit the plant. The utility has said it did not submit the estimate immediately because it was based on a groundless hypothesis. The firm eventually submitted the estimate only 4 days before the March 11th disaster.
Much remains unknown about how workers tried to cool the plant's Number 1 reactor -- where a meltdown occurred -- or why the Number 2 reactor ended up releasing a large amount of radioactive materials
2011年9月22日木曜日
TEPCO releases new images of Fukushima plant
Tokyo Electric Power Company, or TEPCO, has released new video footage of its Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
The video footage is 3 minutes and 40 seconds long and consists of various clips taken between late June and mid-September.
Footage shot at the No. 1 reactor showed work to cover the reactor building to reduce the release of radioactive substances. A panel of 20 square meters was being lifted with a crane. TEPCO says 8 of the 18 panels needed to cover the entire building had been installed as of Tuesday.
Footage taken at the No. 3 reactor showed workers manually adjusting the volume of water to be injected in order to cool the reactor. Earlier this month, TEPCO began boosting water injection to lower the temperature of the reactor to below 100 degrees Celsius.
The video also showed workers learning how to use dosimeters and how to put on full face masks at a training session.
The company said it is becoming more important to train workers as operations to bring the plant under control proceed. It added that it hopes the images will convey the atmosphere at the site.
The video footage is 3 minutes and 40 seconds long and consists of various clips taken between late June and mid-September.
Footage shot at the No. 1 reactor showed work to cover the reactor building to reduce the release of radioactive substances. A panel of 20 square meters was being lifted with a crane. TEPCO says 8 of the 18 panels needed to cover the entire building had been installed as of Tuesday.
Footage taken at the No. 3 reactor showed workers manually adjusting the volume of water to be injected in order to cool the reactor. Earlier this month, TEPCO began boosting water injection to lower the temperature of the reactor to below 100 degrees Celsius.
The video also showed workers learning how to use dosimeters and how to put on full face masks at a training session.
The company said it is becoming more important to train workers as operations to bring the plant under control proceed. It added that it hopes the images will convey the atmosphere at the site.
2011年6月9日木曜日
Efforts to delay radioactive water leaks
Tokyo Electric Power Company continues to struggle to prevent possible leaks of highly-radioactive water that is accumulating at its troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.
TEPCO plans to move an additional 2,700 tons of highly-contaminated water from the reactor buildings to an adjacent waste processing facility.
The move is an attempt to postpone by 5 days water overflowing from a tunnel outside Reactor 2. This could occur on June 20th if a new water-decontaminating system is not installed and in operation by next Wednesday.
The utility says it has already obtained the consent of the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency for the plan.
The Agency says the measure is appropriate since there is no risk of the water leaking outside the waste facility.
More than 105,000 tons of highly radioactive water is believed to have accumulated in the reactor and turbine buildings.
The company says the amount is increasing by more than 500 tons daily as fresh water continues to be injected into the reactors in an attempt to lower their temperatures.
The utility says 14,200 tons of contaminated water will be stored 1.4 meters deep in the basement of the facility. After being decontaminated, the operator plans to use the water in the reactors as a coolant.
The company says it is determined to begin operating the water-decontaminating system by June 25th at the latest.
TEPCO plans to move an additional 2,700 tons of highly-contaminated water from the reactor buildings to an adjacent waste processing facility.
The move is an attempt to postpone by 5 days water overflowing from a tunnel outside Reactor 2. This could occur on June 20th if a new water-decontaminating system is not installed and in operation by next Wednesday.
The utility says it has already obtained the consent of the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency for the plan.
The Agency says the measure is appropriate since there is no risk of the water leaking outside the waste facility.
More than 105,000 tons of highly radioactive water is believed to have accumulated in the reactor and turbine buildings.
The company says the amount is increasing by more than 500 tons daily as fresh water continues to be injected into the reactors in an attempt to lower their temperatures.
The utility says 14,200 tons of contaminated water will be stored 1.4 meters deep in the basement of the facility. After being decontaminated, the operator plans to use the water in the reactors as a coolant.
The company says it is determined to begin operating the water-decontaminating system by June 25th at the latest.
2011年4月18日月曜日
Workers cannot approach reactor buildings
At the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, high levels of radiation have kept workers from approaching the buildings housing the first 3 reactors, which lost their cooling functions in the March 11th earthquake and tsunami.
On Friday, the highest radiation level measured outside the double-entry doors of the Number 1 to 3 reactor buildings was 2 to 4 millisieverts per hour.
Radiation levels measured between the double doors of those reactor buildings was 270 millisieverts in the Number One reactor, 12 in Number 2, and 10 in Number 3.
The radiation level detected at the Number One reactor exceeds the national exposure limit of 250 millisieverts for nuclear contract workers.
Tokyo Electric Power Company, TEPCO, has started using a remote-controlled robot inside the reactor buildings.
But issues remain as radioactive water has been found in turbine buildings and the utility tunnel outside the reactors.
At the Number 2 reactor, the level of highly contaminated water in the tunnel is still rising. To prevent overflow, TEPCO is stepping up the inspection of the nuclear waste processing facility, to which it aims to transfer contaminated water.
Underground water at the plant is also contaminated.
On Wednesday, the level of radioactive substances sharply increased at facilities where underground water from the Number 1 and 2 reactors is collected.
On Friday, workers kept on monitoring the situation.
They say the level of radioactive substances has stabilized or decreased in every reactor from 1 to 6.
So they say it's unlikely that highly radioactive water is still seeping into underground water.
Monday, Apri
On Friday, the highest radiation level measured outside the double-entry doors of the Number 1 to 3 reactor buildings was 2 to 4 millisieverts per hour.
Radiation levels measured between the double doors of those reactor buildings was 270 millisieverts in the Number One reactor, 12 in Number 2, and 10 in Number 3.
The radiation level detected at the Number One reactor exceeds the national exposure limit of 250 millisieverts for nuclear contract workers.
Tokyo Electric Power Company, TEPCO, has started using a remote-controlled robot inside the reactor buildings.
But issues remain as radioactive water has been found in turbine buildings and the utility tunnel outside the reactors.
At the Number 2 reactor, the level of highly contaminated water in the tunnel is still rising. To prevent overflow, TEPCO is stepping up the inspection of the nuclear waste processing facility, to which it aims to transfer contaminated water.
Underground water at the plant is also contaminated.
On Wednesday, the level of radioactive substances sharply increased at facilities where underground water from the Number 1 and 2 reactors is collected.
On Friday, workers kept on monitoring the situation.
They say the level of radioactive substances has stabilized or decreased in every reactor from 1 to 6.
So they say it's unlikely that highly radioactive water is still seeping into underground water.
Monday, Apri
2011年4月16日土曜日
Wastewater level at No.2 reactor tunnel rising
The operator of the troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant says the level of highly radioactive water in a tunnel of the No. 2 reactor has been rising.
Contaminated water in the plant's facilities is hampering efforts to restore reactor cooling systems. Leakages of such water into the ocean and the ground are also raising concern.
Tokyo Electric Power Company, or TEPCO, finished transferring part of the wastewater -- about 660 tons -- from the tunnel to a condenser in a turbine building on Wednesday.
The transfer lowered the water level in the tunnel by 8 centimeters, but it began rising again, exceeding the previous level by 2.5 centimeters as of Saturday morning.
TEPCO says work to fix the leakage of highly radioactive water into the ocean earlier this month may have caused water from the reactor to accumulate in the tunnel.
The company hopes to begin transferring contaminated water to a waste-processing facility by the end of next week. It is now accelerating work to monitor and fix water leaks in the facility.
Highly radioactive water may also be leaking underground.
On Thursday, TEPCO detected higher radiation levels in underground water. The observed level was up to 38 times that of one week ago.
TEPCO began taking radiation readings 3 times per week on Saturday, instead of just once per week.
Saturday, April 16, 2011 12
Contaminated water in the plant's facilities is hampering efforts to restore reactor cooling systems. Leakages of such water into the ocean and the ground are also raising concern.
Tokyo Electric Power Company, or TEPCO, finished transferring part of the wastewater -- about 660 tons -- from the tunnel to a condenser in a turbine building on Wednesday.
The transfer lowered the water level in the tunnel by 8 centimeters, but it began rising again, exceeding the previous level by 2.5 centimeters as of Saturday morning.
TEPCO says work to fix the leakage of highly radioactive water into the ocean earlier this month may have caused water from the reactor to accumulate in the tunnel.
The company hopes to begin transferring contaminated water to a waste-processing facility by the end of next week. It is now accelerating work to monitor and fix water leaks in the facility.
Highly radioactive water may also be leaking underground.
On Thursday, TEPCO detected higher radiation levels in underground water. The observed level was up to 38 times that of one week ago.
TEPCO began taking radiation readings 3 times per week on Saturday, instead of just once per week.
Saturday, April 16, 2011 12
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