I know I'm just an Extreme EnviroWeenie spewing Biased Claptrap, but didn't we say this was likely occurring many months ago?
TEPCO finds sign of fresh nuclear fission at Fukushima reactor
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Wednesday that it has detected signs of a recent nuclear fission in the No. 2 reactor at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi power plant, but ruled out the possibility that a major criticality accident had occurred.
The plant operator injected early Wednesday water containing boric acid to control a possible nuclear reaction at the reactor, where nuclear fuel is believed to have melted when the cooling system failed following the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami. The company said the reactor's temperature and pressure were stable.
As for the possibility of criticality, in which nuclear fuel sustains a fission chain reaction, the utility's spokesman said such a phenomenon may have happened "temporarily or partially," but he does not think enough energy has been generated to raise the reactor's temperature and pressure.
The latest incident suggests that the plant's seemingly stable situation could be fragile, even almost eight months after the crisis erupted. The world's worst nuclear crisis in 25 years resulted in the meltdown of nuclear fuel in the Nos. 1 to 3 reactors at the Fukushima complex...
(Mainichi Japan) November 2, 2011
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20111102p2g00m0dm008000c.htmlXenon suggests possible nuclear fission
A nuclear energy expert says the presence of xenon in the No.2 reactor leaves open the possibility that localized and temporary fission could still occur.
Professor Koji Okamoto of the University of Tokyo Graduate School says substances from melted fuel that could undergo fission are probably scattered around, but are unlikely to react. He says, however, that neutrons from radioactive materials could react with the uranium fuel and other substances...
...The professor also referred to a plan by the government and TEPCO to achieve a state of cold shutdown by the end of the year. He says that if fission reactions are not under control, it would not be a cold shutdown.
Okamoto says TEPCO must locate the melted fuel inside and outside the reactor in order to prevent further reactions.
Wednesday, November 02, 2011 10:24 +0900 (JST)
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/02_13.htmlNuke watchdog says fresh meltdown unlikely
...The safety agency says it is unlikely that nuclear fuel has begun melting again, as the density of xenon is low and there has been no change in the reactor's temperatures.
The agency also says it will closely monitor if xenon continues to be detected after Tokyo Electric Power Company poured boric acid solution into the reactor to suppress nuclear fission.
It added that it cannot yet say how the latest development will affect the government's plan to achieve a cold shutdown of the disabled reactors by the end of the year.
Senior official Yoshinori Moriyama said it is difficult to determine the amount of nuclear fuel remaining in the containment vessel of the No.2 reactor. He said his agency will assess the situation and judge if it is still possible to stably lower temperatures in the reactor and containment vessel.
Wednesday, November 02, 2011 15:10 +0900 (JST)
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/02_22.htmlNuclear safety body used inspection criteria drafted by nuclear fuel firm
The only legally mandated, independent nuclear industry inspection body in Japan copied nuclear fuel inspection criteria directly from documents provided by the company making the fuel, the Mainichi has discovered.
The documents, obtained by the Mainichi through repeated official information requests, show that the Japan Nuclear Energy Safety Organization (JNES) copied an inspection manual verbatim from materials it ordered Global Nuclear Fuel Japan Co. to create. Global Nuclear Fuel is one of the firms subject to JNES checks.
The legally mandated JNES inspections are based on official manuals which include a list of inspection procedures and pass criteria. The Mainichi obtained the manual for a check of nuclear fuel scheduled for delivery to Higashidori nuclear plant in Aomori Prefecture. The Mainichi also obtained a draft inspection procedure document -- listing inspection goals, items, methods for sampling fuel lots, and fuel rod measurements -- created by the fuel shipment's maker, Global Nuclear Fuel.
Except for the cover and first page, the JNES manual and the Global Nuclear Fuel document were identical, even down to the page format and font...
(Mainichi Japan) November 2, 2011
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20111102p2a00m0na016000c.htmlCarry on, regardless