At #3 reactor there was a meltdown on March 14th where the melted fuel pooled at the bottom of the pressure vessel. Then on March 24th ability to cool the corium failed and it melted down again, this time "much of the fuel fell through the pressure vessel to the surrounding containment vessel".
A second meltdown likely occurred in the No. 3 reactor at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, a scenario that could hinder the current strategy to end the crisis, a scientist said. http://www.asahi.com/english/TKY201108080276.html...Initially, officials of the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency explained that the higher radiation levels were caused by radioactive materials falling to the ground with the rain.
But there is also the possibility that additional radioactive materials emitted from the second meltdown may have been blown by the wind.
Between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m. on March 21, the pressure within the pressure vessel of the No. 3 reactor core increased sharply to about 110 atmospheres, likely caused by an explosion within the pressure vessel due to a lack of cooling of the fuel. That was probably the start of the second meltdown, Tanabe said.
...At the No. 3 reactor building, black smoke spewed from the reactor building on the afternoons of March 21 and March 23. Tanabe said the smoke may have been the result of what is referred to as a core-concrete reaction, when melted fuel comes in contact with the concrete of the containment vessel. Such a reaction typically occurs when insufficient cooling follows a core meltdown.
...
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
