Fukushima Reactor(s) Leaking Again; Hydrogen Building Up

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 Sunday, December 4, 2011 - 01:23 Special to HuntingtonNews.Net
Although the initial accident took place in the Spring, the reactors at Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant again have mounting pressure from hydrogen. Workers are trying to reduce the pressure by spraying nitrogen. Should hydrogen levels go too high, additional explosions could occur. This Youtube video is based on a release from Toyko Electric Power.
In late October, Tokyo Electric Power Company began extracting gases from the containment vessel of the No.2 reactor to remove radioactive substances. During the work, TEPCO found hydrogen accumulating in parts of the reactor at a density of up to 2.9 percent.

TEPCO started pumping nitrogen into the pressure vessels of the No.1, 2, 3 reactors on Thursday to lessen the concentration of hydrogen.

The density of hydrogen accumulating in the containment and pressure vessels is thought to be below 4 percent, the level where an explosion could occur.

TEPCO says the nitrogen injection will push out hydrogen and reduce its concentration.

Keeping hydrogen density low is an indispensible condition in the second step of the process decided upon by the government and TEPCO to resolve the nuclear accident. They are aiming to achieve a state of cold shutdown for the reactors by the end of the year.

The Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency plans to assess how well TEPCO can manage hydrogen levels.