Nuclear Power Plant In Japan Research Articles

From Three Mile Island to Fukushima Daiichi [Spectral Lines

Three years ago, a tsunami came crashing down on the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan, leading to the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl. As Associate Editor Eliza Strickland explains in this issue in "Fukushima's Next 40 Years," that accident still reverberates strongly in Japan, where all of the country‚s nuclear plants are currently off line.

Influence of new fac tors on global energy prospects in the medium term: compar ison among the 2010, 2011 and 2012 editions of the IEA's World Energy Outlook reports

Several economic, geopolitical, demographic and environmental factors drive world’s energy scenario; among them, the reduction of greenhouse gases emissions and the consequent development of renewable energy sources, the global financial crisis, the increase in global population and urbanization, the increase of fossil fuels prices have had a particularly strong impact in recent years. Furthermore, exceptional events, such as the accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan, may occur to complicate World energy scenarios. The most recent reports on world energy markets, especially the WEO - World Energy Outlook, are characterized by the introduction of new prospects and scenarios, as a result of unpredictable events such as Fukushima accident or of emerging factors, such as the increasing share of unconventional resources in the future energy mix (shale gas and shale oil) and the importance of energy efficiency, proposing an Efficient World Scenario. Disappointing signals about the development of renewables are also recorded. The paper focuses on the comparison among the major reports and statistical energy data, especially the 2010, 2011 and 2012 editions of the World Energy Outlook issued by IEA. Mid-term energy scenarios are presented and discussed, with particular emphasis on the increasing importance of energy efficiency, on the new prospects concerning nuclear power and on the role of unconventional fossil fuels.

Ionizing radiation effects on soil biota: Application of lessons learned from Chernobyl accident for radioecological monitoring

Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan and some other neighboring countries bear the heritage of several Soviet era nuclear disasters and the resulting severe radioactive pollution of vast territories. The most famous of them is the Chernobyl catastrophe on April 26, 1986 which resulted in a massive radioisotope fallout (0.185 MBq m−2 or higher) over about 25,000 km2 of the territory of the former USSR alone. Extensive radioecological research around Chernobyl demonstrated that despite high resistance of most of soil-dwelling organisms to ionizing radiation, some soil animals were very vulnerable to radioactive pollution due to low motility, direct contact with hot particles and radioisotope accumulation in soil. These are the reasons that soil organisms are very important organisms for long-term radioecological observations. In this review, we analyze published data on the response of different soil taxa to radioisotope contamination of soil near Chernobyl and other nuclear accident locations. Field results are compared with the available experimental data. Earthworms, millipedes, collembolans and oribatid mites were recognized as the most appropriate biomonitors of different radioactivity levels and types of radioactive pollution. Synthesis of this knowledge allowed us to propose a multilevel system of soil radioecological monitoring, which may be useful for studying the short- and long-term environmental consequences of the recent catastrophe at Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant in Japan, as well as other locations vulnerable to radioactive pollution.

Summary of the historical development of seismic design of nuclear power plants in Japan and the U.S.

Over the past 50 years seismic design of nuclear power plants in Japan and the U.S. have undergone very significant changes in the three activities associated with design:•Quantification of seismic load and other applicable loads and specification of their load combinations to be considered in design.•Analysis methods and procedures necessary to convert input earthquake motions and loads normally expressed in the form of acceleration to resultant seismic dynamic or equivalent static forces, moments or stresses, fms in structures, systems and components, SSC.•Codes or standards acceptance criteria used to evaluate resultant forces, moments or stresses, fms in nuclear safety SSC to determine design adequacy.These applications to the historical development of Nuclear Power Plant, NPP designs in Japan and U.S. are summarized.

Spatiotemporal distribution of 137Cs in the sea surrounding Japanese Islands in the decades before the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in 2011

The historic spatiotemporal distribution of 137Cs in the seawaters and sea-floor sediments adjacent to nuclear power plants in Japan are summarized, using data obtained over a period of time more than 20years prior to the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in 2011. Relatively uniform distributions of 137Cs were observed both in the surface seawaters (1m in depth) and in deeper seawaters (10 to 30m above the seabed and ranging from tens to hundreds of meters in depth) independent of the geographical position, although lower concentrations were observed in significantly deeper bottom seawaters. Conversely, there were wide variations in 137Cs levels between sediments, such that higher 137Cs concentrations were observed in the deeper sampling locations.A mathematical model describing the successive transfer of 137Cs from surface waters through deeper waters to sediments suggested that the transfer rate of 137Cs from deep water to the sediments, and the loss rate from bottom sediments, were both greater than the transfer rate from surface water to deeper water. It was found that the calculated regression lines for 137Cs depletion rates over time for surface waters, deeper waters, and sediments were approximately parallel when plotted on a semi-logarithmic coordinate system, regardless of the sampling location. A radionuclide depletion half-life was calculated to be 4months to 16years with the geometric mean of 2.22y for the sediments in the Fukushima region, suggesting that nuclear contamination will be remediated over time through sediment redistribution processes such as remobilization, bioturbation, and migration due to sea currents.

Radiological protection issues arising during and after the Fukushima nuclear reactor accident

Following the Fukushima accident, the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) convened a task group to compile lessons learned from the nuclear reactor accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan, with respect to the ICRP system of radiological protection. In this memorandum the members of the task group express their personal views on issues arising during and after the accident, without explicit endorsement of or approval by the ICRP. While the affected people were largely protected against radiation exposure and no one incurred a lethal dose of radiation (or a dose sufficiently large to cause radiation sickness), many radiological protection questions were raised. The following issues were identified: inferring radiation risks (and the misunderstanding of nominal risk coefficients); attributing radiation effects from low dose exposures; quantifying radiation exposure; assessing the importance of internal exposures; managing emergency crises; protecting rescuers and volunteers; responding with medical aid; justifying necessary but disruptive protective actions; transiting from an emergency to an existing situation; rehabilitating evacuated areas; restricting individual doses of members of the public; caring for infants and children; categorising public exposures due to an accident; considering pregnant women and their foetuses and embryos; monitoring public protection; dealing with ‘contamination’ of territories, rubble and residues and consumer products; recognising the importance of psychological consequences; and fostering the sharing of information. Relevant ICRP Recommendations were scrutinised, lessons were collected and suggestions were compiled. It was concluded that the radiological protection community has an ethical duty to learn from the lessons of Fukushima and resolve any identified challenges. Before another large accident occurs, it should be ensured that inter alia: radiation risk coefficients of potential health effects are properly interpreted; the limitations of epidemiological studies for attributing radiation effects following low exposures are understood; any confusion on protection quantities and units is resolved; the potential hazard from the intake of radionuclides into the body is elucidated; rescuers and volunteers are protected with an ad hoc system; clear recommendations on crisis management and medical care and on recovery and rehabilitation are available; recommendations on public protection levels (including infant, children and pregnant women and their expected offspring) and associated issues are consistent and understandable; updated recommendations on public monitoring policy are available; acceptable (or tolerable) ‘contamination’ levels are clearly stated and defined; strategies for mitigating the serious psychological consequences arising from radiological accidents are sought; and, last but not least, failures in fostering information sharing on radiological protection policy after an accident need to be addressed with recommendations to minimise such lapses in communication.

Isotope dilution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry for determination of 126Sn content in spent nuclear fuel sample

The 126Sn content in a spent nuclear fuel solution was determined by isotope dilution inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ID-ICP-MS) for its inventory estimation in high-level radioactive waste. A well-characterized irradiated UO2 fuel sample dissolved in a hot cell was used as a sample to evaluate the reliability of the methodology. Prior to the ICP-MS measurement, Sn was separated from Te (126Te), which causes major isobaric interference in the determination of 126Sn content, along with highly radioactive coexisting elements, such as Sr (90Sr), Y (90Y), Cs (137Cs) and Ba (137m Ba), using an anion-exchange column. The absence of counts attributed to Te at m/z = 125, 128, and 130 in the Sn-containing effluent (Sn fraction) indicates that Te was completely removed from the anion-exchange column. After washing, Sn retained on the column was readily eluted with 1 M HNO3 accompanied with approximately 80% of the Cd and 0.03% of the U in the initial sample. Owing to the presences of Cd and U in Sn fraction, the measurements of 116Sn and 119Sn were affected by the isobaric 116Cd and the doubly charged 238U2+ion, resulting in the positive bias of the determined values. With the exception of the isotopic ratios including 116Sn and 119Sn, 117Sn/126Sn, 118Sn/126Sn, 120Sn/126Sn, 122Sn/126Sn and 124Sn/126Sn were successfully determined and showed good agreement with those obtained through ORIGEN2 calculations. The measured concentration of 126Sn in the spent nuclear fuel sample solution was 0.74 ± 0.14 ng/g, which corresponds to 23.0 ± 4.5 ng per gram of the irradiated UO2 fuel (excluding the presence of 126Sn in the insoluble residue). The results reported in this paper are the first experimental values of 126Sn content and isotope ratios in the spent nuclear fuel solution originating in spent nuclear fuel irradiated at a nuclear power plant in Japan.

A case study of economic incentives and local citizens' attitudes toward hosting a nuclear power plant in Japan: Impacts of the Fukushima accident

The attitude of local communities near a nuclear power plant (NPP) is a key factor in nuclear policy decision making in Japan. This case study compared local citizens' attitudes in 2010 and 2011 toward the benefits and drawbacks of hosting Kashiwazaki–Kariwa NPP. The Fukushima accident occurred in this period. After the accident, benefit recognition of utility bill refunds clearly declined, while that of public facilities did not, suggesting the influence of a bribery effect. The negative shift of attitudes about hosting the NPP after the accident was more modest in Kariwa Village, which saw a large expansion of social welfare programs, than in the other two areas, which lacked such a budget expansion. Policy implications of these results regarding the provision of economic incentives in NPP host areas after the Fukushima accident were discussed.

Potential for rooftop photovoltaics in Tokyo to replace nuclear capacity

In 2010, nuclear power accounted for 27% of electricity production in Japan. The March 2011 disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi power station resulted in the closure of all of Japan’s nuclear power plants and it remains an open question as to how many will reopen. Even before the loss of nuclear capacity, there were efforts in Japan to foster the use of renewable energy, including large scale solar power. Nuclear power plants in Japan provided more than just base-load by storing energy in large scale pumped hydroelectric storage systems, which was then released to provide some peaking capacity. If this storage were instead coupled to current generation rooftop solar systems in Tokyo, the combined system could help to meet peak requirements while at the same time providing ∼26.5% of the electricity Tokyo used to get from nuclear output, and do so 91% of the time. Data from a study of rooftop space and a 34 yr data set of average daily irradiance in the Tokyo metropolitan area were used. Using pumped hydroelectric storage with 5.6 times this rooftop area could completely provide for TEPCO’s nuclear capacity.

Micrometer-level naked-eye detection of caesium particulates in the solid state

Large amounts of radioactive material were released from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan, contaminating the local environment. During the early stages of such nuclear accidents, iodine I-131 (half-life 8.02 d) is usually detectable in the surrounding atmosphere and bodies of water. On the other hand, in the long-term, soil and water contamination by Cs-137, which has a half-life of 30.17 years, is a serious problem. In Japan, the government is planning and carrying out radioactive decontamination operations not only with public agencies but also non-governmental organizations, making radiation measurements within Japan. If caesium (also radiocaesium) could be detected by the naked eye then its environmental remediation would be facilitated. Supramolecular material approaches, such as host–guest chemistry, are useful in the design of high-resolution molecular sensors and can be used to convert molecular-recognition processes into optical signals. In this work, we have developed molecular materials (here, phenols) as an optical probe for caesium cation-containing particles with implementation based on simple spray-on reagents and a commonly available fluorescent lamp for naked-eye detection in the solid state. This chemical optical probe provides a higher spatial resolution than existing radioscopes and gamma-ray cameras.

Study on the cooling performance of sea salt solution during reflood heat transfer in a long vertical tube

Following the March 2011 earthquake, the nuclear power plants in Japan were affected, and emergency systems were activated. The earthquake caused a tsunami, which hit the east coast of Japan, and caused a loss of all on-site and off-site power at the Fukushima Daiichi, leaving it without any emergency power. In this situation, freshwater and seawater were used by helicopter, fire truck, and concrete pump truck to remove heat. To investigate the effect of 35‰ sea salt solution on reflood heat transfer in a long vertical tube (1600mm in the heating length), quenching experiments were conducted. We have observed a more enhanced cooling performance in the case of the sea salt solution reflood. Consequently, the cooling performance is enhanced more than nearly 10s for sea salt solution. The enhancing cause of the cooling performance after the quenching experiments using the sea salt solution were investigated through the macroscopic observation, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), contact angles and SEM-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) of the inner surface of the test section. The cause of the cooling performance enhancement for the sea salt solution is not related to the enhanced wettability of the liquid film on the heater surface due to the deposition of sea salts but the top quenching by earlier condensation of vapor during sea salt solution reflood.

THIEF Model Evaluation for Cables used in Nuclear Plants in Japan

Many nuclear power plants in the U.S. and elsewhere are transitioning from a prescriptive to a risk-informed performance-based fire protection program. The acceptance of a proposed performance-based fire protection program is partly based on the results of a probabilistic risk assessment (PRA), which quantifies the likelihood of core damage and harmful radiological release in the event of a fire. The fire PRA relies on engineering analyses to determine the effect of fires on safety-related equipment and components, such as electrical cables critical for safe plant shutdown. The report of the CAROLFIRE research program published in 2008 provides thermal and electrical performance data for a broad range of cable types used in U.S. nuclear power plants. The report also describes the thermally-induced electrical failure (THIEF) model, which estimates the temperature response of a cable for a specified thermal exposure. The purpose of the research described in this paper was to obtain thermal and electrical performance data and to evaluate the predictive capability of the THIEF model for some cables that are used in nuclear plants in Japan. Two types of cables were tested, designated as CCV and PSHV. The average fire-induced electrical failure temperature under the jacket of the CCV cable was approximately 400°C. The average failure temperature of the PSHV cable was approximately 370°C. Both Japanese cables therefore performed like the thermoset cables in the CAROLFIRE tests. The THIEF model predictions are in remarkably good agreement with the measured cable temperatures for the tests in which electrical failure was observed. However, the model overestimates the cable temperature at the end of the tests in which failure was not observed.

Fukushima--Two Years Later

On 11 March 2011 the Great Tohoku earthquake ( M w 9.1, Global Centroid Moment Tensor) struck northern Japan’s Pacific coast. The estimated number of deaths (including missing) was more than 18,000, and the estimated economic losses were on the order of at least 2×1013 Yen (about US$ 2.5×1011). The tsunami caused a Level 7 nuclear disaster at the Fukushima Dai‐ichi Nuclear Power Station (NPS) which required the evacuation of a large region due to radioactive contamination, and necessitated ongoing efforts to stabilize the situation with the long term goal of decommissioning the destroyed reactors. For a significant period after the accident all nuclear power plants in Japan were shut down; at this moment, two reactors at the Ohi NPS in Fukui Prefecture have been restarted. The Fukushima calamity prompted extensive reexamination and soul searching by the Japanese government, stakeholders, and a variety of public and nongovernmental entities. Scores of reports have been written by individuals, regulators, and organizations worldwide. Now that almost two years have passed, it is time to sum up the lessons learned and to start moving forward—to move from discussions of what went wrong to discussions about what we must do right. In this article, a seismologist (R. J. G.), a probabilistic risk practitioner (W. E.), and a nuclear safety expert (J. N.) pool their respective knowledge to provide a unified view of where we are and where we should go. Some of the lessons to be learned apply particularly to Japan, but in many cases the lessons apply everywhere. In the mid‐1960s Japan, an earthquake‐prone island nation without significant petroleum deposits, was faced with the question of how to secure reliable electric power supplies. The government, with the cooperation of major industry groups, opted to commit heavily to nuclear power. In the face of …

Dancing to the Rhythm of a Geiger Counter: Modern(ist) Narcissism and the Anthropo(s)cenic Shock

In 2011, the biggest nuclear accident since Chernobyl took place at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan. Soon after the nuclear accident, a video appeared on YouTube in which a rogue power plant worker walked towards one of the site’s CCTV cameras and pointed to its centre while watching his own image being streamed live on his smartphone. Despite it clearly being a reinterpretation of Centers, the 1971 performance by Vito Acconci, this essay argues that the Fukushima reenactment not only questioned the cultural paradigms that grounded Acconci’s original gesture, but also signaled the urgent need for humankind to reconsider its own ontological and epistemological grounds in the face of imminent extinction. By comparing Vito Acconci’s Centers with its Fukushima reenactment, the essay tells the history of Modernity and of its failure as a project of human emancipation, grounded on a fantasy of human mastery of ‘Nature.’
 Author(s): João Florêncio
 Title (English): Dancing to the Rhythm of a Geiger Counter: Modern(ist) Narcissism and the Anthropo(s)cenic Shock
 Journal Reference: Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 10, No. 1-2 (Summer-Winter 2013)
 Publisher: Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities – Skopje 
 Page Range: 111-122
 Page Count: 12
 Citation (English): João Florêncio, “Dancing to the Rhythm of a Geiger Counter: Modern(ist) Narcissism and the Anthropo(s)cenic Shock,” Identities: Journal for Politics, Gender and Culture, Vol. 10, No. 1-2 (Summer-Winter 2013): 111-122.

Review of thermal-hydraulic researches in severe accidents in light water reactors

The Tohoku Region Pacific Coast Earthquake and subsequent severe accident (SA) in Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station caused unprecedented disaster in Japan. Before this accident, considerable researches on SAs had been carried out in Japan. However, unfortunately, such researches could not prevent the accident due to the unexpected huge Tsunami. However, the researches on SAs become more and more important in order to make clear the causes of the accident in Fukushima and improve the safety of nuclear power plants in Japan. In view of this, review on researches on thermal hydraulics in SAs in light water reactors was carried out. Important thermal-hydraulic phenomena in SAs were identified. Research activities on each phenomenon were surveyed mainly based on the articles published in Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology of Atomic Energy Society of Japan.

OS1422 ニッケル合金の大気中における疲労き裂進展速度の定式化

When defects are detected by in-service inspections of the nuclear power plants in Japan, the allowable flaws can be evaluated in accordance with the rules on Fitness-for-Service for Nuclear Power Plants of Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers (JSME maintenance rules). Fatigue crack growth (FCG) analysis is one of the important actions for assessing the allowable flaw size. However a FCG curves for nickel base alloys in air condition is not provided in the current JSME maintenance rules. The paper summarizes the data based on the fatigue tests for the alloys and formulated FCG curves. The results show that the test temperature and stress ratio are dominant factors and the curves are the functions of these parameters. Threshold of stress intensity factor is introduced in the curves by taking into account the crack closure.

Energy materials: supramolecular nanoparticles for solar energy harvesting

Renewable resource of carbon-free energy is crucial in the current scenario of global warming and our growing energy needs. Besides, the significance of safer energy resources has been underscored by many nuclear mishaps, including the recently crippled Fukushima Nuclear power plant in Japan. Sunlight is the most promising alternative to nuclear fuels and greenhouse-gas-emitting fossil and alcohol fuels. (Published: 11 June 2013) Citation: Nano Reviews 2013, 4 : 21079 - http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/nano.v4i0.21079

The Awareness of Residents toward Nuclear Power Plant and an Approach to Conflict Resolution surrounding Wolsung Nuclear Power Plant

This study is to explore the major conflicts and problems in the region surrounding the Wolsung nuclear power plant. Under the situation of the explosion of Hukusima nuclear power plant in Japan, the research approaches residents’ overall awareness on the nuclear power plant in the study area, and this paper tries to understand how the residents are aware of some issues related to the nuclear power plant such as their concerns for damage, possibilities of accident, and the headquarters relocation of Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co. In addition, this paper examines how they note and assess governmental assistances to provide some compensations in the area. Finally, this paper discusses the procedural concerns of governmental assistance, and suggests an approach based on mutual trust between authority and residents. And this research also deals with the needs of the improvement based on the survey results.

Transient impedance changes in venous endothelial monolayers as a biological radiation dosimetry response

Abstract In March of 2011, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake and subsequent 14 meter high tsunami caused major damage to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan. The release of radiation, along with other uncontrolled releases elsewhere, revealed the necessity of a portable high throughput minimally invasive biological dosimetry modality. Immediate and early radiation effects on vasculature could be used as a dosimetry modality. To test whether non-coronary vasculature exhibited transient perturbation in barrier function, video microscopy studies and electric cell-substrate impedance sensing (ECIS) technology were used to probe very subtle changes in primary human vascular endothelium. In our studies, human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) monolayers exhibited a transient, significant decrease (p = 0.017) in monolayer resistance three hours after irradiation with 5.0 Gy of γ rays. Radiation induced perturbations in HUVEC monolayer permeability are similar in magnitude and kinetics to those observed in coronary arterial endothelium. Therefore, at least two types of endothelia respond to radiation on ECIS arrays with an early transient disruption in permeability. This finding supports the use of early passage HUVECs for use in bioelectric dosimetry studies of vasculature and suggests that permeability changes in superficial vessels and sequellae could potentially serve as biological dosimetry tools.

One-and–a-half years since the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident, Japan has learned nothing: resumption of nuclear operations

Japan's prime minister decided on the resumption of nuclear power plant operations. Following an accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in March 2011, it has not been clarified where melted-down fuel rods leaked to and what their current status is. Nevertheless, Japan is going to resume nuclear plant operations. This paper summarizes the progress in handling the accident during the past one-and–a-half years, analyzes the status of nuclear plants in Japan and presents scientific views on the resumption of their operations.