Japan: pressure rising inside nuclear reactor, radiation leak fears increase

Reuters reports: "Tokyo Electric Power Co said pressure inside the No.1 reactor at its Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant has been rising, with the risk of a radiation leak." After the quake hit Japan about 12 hours ago, the plant's cooling system malfunctioned. Update: NYT item with details.

• [jyindc]

  I did a double-take when I saw this story right above the one about the monsters. I thought the two stories were connected.

• [JayByrd]

  Even if the radioactivity is contained — and I pray that it is — the six reactors at this site may be physically damaged beyond repair. That’s the problem with capital-intensive, centralized power systems. Three Mile Island put the U.S. industry into the tank because a billion-dollar asset turned into a $2 billion liability overnight.
  Watch out for those black swans!

  • [kc0bbq]

    Only one reactor is having problems and it’s not the reactor itself, but the diesel backup generators for that reactor that won’t start so the coolant can flow.

    This isn’t like Chernobyl with a reactor with a high positive void coefficient (reactor will produce more and more power with no coolant, everything melts and drops down into the basement and spews really nasty, long-lived isotopes all over the world) and insufficient safety protocols and Soviet leadership.

    The danger is having to vent steam. If steam pressure never gets to high, with no coolant flow the reactor would eventually lose the ability to remain critical. Even if they have to vent steam into the atmosphere and not a containment facility, according to the wikipedia article, “Most of the radioactivity in the water is very short-lived (mostly N-16, with a 7-second half-life), so the turbine hall can be entered soon after the reactor is shut down.”

    It seems like all of the work being done is to avoid damage to the core. BWR reactors have 100 year planned lifetimes. No reason to not try to keep it from being damaged so you don’t lose it over just one layer of failsafe not working in an emergency situation.

• [Anonymous]

  If power is the problem go to Home Depo and mail them a generator. If you need a battery charger check Ebay. Really, how hard would it be to give them a generator and hook it up to their electrical bus? A temp mod would do. Does anyone know how to fly a helicopter and drop the generator to their plant? Seem like we can get cameras there but not resources. I am sure it is not as simple as I imagine but I have not heard any ideas even close to reality. So sad….

  So we sent some coolant… did we really send coolant fluid or boric acid? How about a few demin beds to filter and make demin water rather than liquid coolant.

  BTW, I just a dumb truck driver that likes to read about + moderator temperature coef and the 6-factor formula.

• [Cowicide]

  Hmmm, from what I understand Nuclear power is perfectly safe and there’s nothing to worry about, correct??

  I’m sure a bunch of solar panels, wind farms, tidal generators, etc would have been very dangerous if they malfunctioned, huh?

  Yay, nuclear!!

  http://boingboing.net/2010/02/16/obama-announces-fede.html
  http://boingboing.net/2010/02/18/ted-talk-bill-gates.html

  cough…
  http://www.boingboing.net/2010/02/18/ted-talk-bill-gates.html#comment-717821

• [Anonymous]

  The elevated spent fuel pools have also been compromised by the explosions.
  Israeli dependents and non-essential embassy staff removed several days ago.

• [desiredusername]

  If thats the same one I believe they pumped water in there and the US Air Force flew some coolant over there. Then Clinton made an announcement about it…Ive only picked it up in pieces.

• [betatron]

  There are a staggering number of backups and failure-mode work arounds at a facility like this. I don’t doubt that people are crapping their pants at the plant, but whatever the situation (and nobody knows what that is), they are very far from defeated. I am certain they will succeed in preventing a catastrophic containment failure although they’ll probably end up venting a little steam and gas.

• [emmdeeaych]

  I, for one, am glad Japan is so reliant on nuclear power. After all, nothing could be more tragic then some birds hitting a windmill.

  • [Cowicide]

    Yah, nuclear power… great stuff, great stuff… hopefully the radioactive love will spread around the world like Chernobyl did. That’s always really healthy compared to the hazards of green energy.

    0_o

    • [carriem]

      The reports are positive. The failure-mode work-arounds operated as designed. We’ve come a long way from 3 Mile Island, Cowicide. Let alone Chernobyl, which was a completely different design and failed due to human error.

      One doesn’t build reactors on fault lines without being pretty certain you can handle a shakeup like this.

      Sources tell me they got the cooling system running again.

      • [emmdeeaych]

        I suppose the vague sense of unease is more than compensated for by all the pretty lights?

      • [Cowicide]

        Sources tell me they got the cooling system running again.

        Take another look at your magic 8-ball.

        http://www.boingboing.net/2011/03/11/japan-radiation-leak-1.html

        Now, ahem… please, continue… please continue explaining to me how safe nuclear power is again?

        Educate me.

        • [carriem]

          uhhh yeah, boingboing isn’t a reliable NEWS source, as much as we all adore it.

          They got the cooling system running again, but the hydrogen accumulation sparked an explosion. Not saying it’s great, but your snarkiness is distasteful.

          Still no “meltdown”, as they call it.