Source of Fukushima’s nagging radioactive leak finally discovered – TEPCO
Source: rt.com
The source of the radioactive leak at the earthquake-stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant was finally identified by the facility’s operator TEPCO to be in the primary containment vessel of reactor 3, authorities reported.
It was in January when the crew of the plant first noticed that water was leaking through to the drain on the first level of the building housing the reactor.
Engineers probed the space with a camera and found the water leakage to be near a pipe joint that connects directly to the containment vessel.
There is still water inside the containment vessel due to the ongoing flow of the coolant used to keep the stricken reactor’s temperature down.
The most likely scenario is that there’s more water in the vessel than there is in the area where the pipes enter it, the Tokyo Electric Power Company believes.
Before engineers can start decommissioning reactors 1, 2 and 3, which suffered meltdowns, they have to deal with the leakage. The coolant water comes out the other end mixed with radioactive waste. While it is possible to remove the radioactive fuel at this time, TEPCO wants to first plug the leak and fill up the space with more water as an additional measure against radiation.
TEPCO is at present trying to figure out the best strategy for plugging the leak.
Read the rest: Source of Fukushima’s nagging radioactive leak finally discovered – TEPCO
