Breaking News: Nuclear Meltdown at Fukushima nuclear plant(VIDEO)
Chișinău / Moldova.ORG/ -- It seems that a reactor meltdown have been caused today at Fukushima Daichi nuclear power plant in Okuma by the explosion that occurred this morning in Japan.
The control rods is the key piece of technology in a nuclear reactor. Neutrons are generated by nuclear fuel controlling the production rate and flow of these neutrons. They are absorbed by the control rods and generate heat and from heat, electricity.
When the control rods fail to contain the neutron emission and the heat levels inside the reactor a meltdown occurs. The reactor’s temperature rise to a point of 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit, the fuel itself melts and this causes uncontrolled radiation-generating reactions and making approaching to the reactor extremely dangerous.
As long as the reactor core, which is specifically designed to contain high levels of heat, pressure and radiation, remains intact, the melted fuel can be dealt with and the meltdown may not cause a disaster.
The earthquake in Japan, in addition to incapacity of the control rods to regulate the fuel — and the reactor’s coolant system — appears to have damaged the containment facility, and the explosion almost certainly did. There have been reports of “white smoke,” perhaps burning concrete, coming from the scene of the explosion, indicating a containment breach and the almost certain escape of significant amounts of radiation.
Until this moment, the events in Japan have many similarities to the Chernobyl disaster in 1986. Reports indicate that up to 1.5 meters (4.9 feet) of the reactor fuel was exposed. The reactor fuel appears to have at least partially melted, and the subsequent explosion has shattered the walls and roof of the containment vessel — and likely the remaining useful parts of the control and coolant systems.
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