Fukushima Daiichi update; Friday evening 5/20

TEPCO has released photos taken at Fukushima Daiichi as the tsunami hit. I've assembled them into a slide show movie and the sequence is now available on the Atomic Power Review YouTube Channel. Link to new video below.

Tsunami Hits Fukushima Daiichi

In other news... TEPCO has further increased the rate of water injection to the reactor at No. 3 plant at the Fukushima Daiichi site. TEPCO is now injecting a total of 21 cubic meters per hour to the plant; 9 through the fire extinguishing line and 12 through the feed system. Prior to today, the rate had been 18 cubic meters per hour, 9 each system. This rate had existed since May 17th, when the feed line was increased from 6 to 9 cubic meters per hour. The feed line was added to the fire extinguishing line as a source on May 12th.

This continuous increase is of interest; also of interest is the injection of 180 kg of boric acid on May 15th from 14:33 through 17:00. Soon after this, there appears on the temperature tracking graphs released by TEPCO a sharp rise in a number of temperatures, particularly those at the top of the RPV but also at least one related to a downstream (tailpiece) temperature reading on a steam relief valve. There was also a drop in RPV indicated water level that this increasing of feed rate has corrected.. the drop in level occurring before the borated water was added. I'm both looking for more details on this and waiting for another TEPCO press release that might mention their thinking.. and their suspicions.

One further note released by TEPCO which is not particularly surprising is the discovery of about 12 feet or so of water in the reactor building basement at No. 1 plant. I say not surprising, because everyone knows by now that the water is going somewhere after injection.. and that string of "somewheres" starts in the reactor building.

Finally for now... TEPCO has a diagram showing what exactly it means when it says that it will apply grout to the suppression chamber ("toroid") at No. 2 plant. Essentially, TEPCO intends to fill the whole room with concrete, it appears, from the illustration below. This will seal the chamber and allow recovery vis a vis cooling of the core to go forward.


9:00 PM Eastern Friday 5/20
ATOMIC POWER REVIEW