#Fukushima I Nuke Plant: Contaminated Water Increased in Reactor 4 Turbine Building

So much for TEPCO's "roadmap". And remember, TEPCO thinks the Spent Fuel Pool of the Reactor 4 may collapse unless they put in a support structure.

From Yomiuri Shinbun (12:40PM JST 4/23/2011):

Contaminated water with radioactive materials in TEPCO's Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant Reactor 4 turbine building has risen 20 centimeters in 10 days. There's also 5-meter deep water in the reactor building, estimated to be 4,000 tons, as has been already disclosed by Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency; this is in addition to the amount of contaminated water from other reactors.

TEPCO has been transporting the contaminated water with high radioactive materials from Reactor 2 [turbine building] to the central waste disposal facility. But the amount that the facility can store safely is likely to be half of what was planned, and there is no clear plan to deal with the contaminated water from other reactors.

According to TEPCO, the water in the Reactor 4 turbine building basement was 0.9 meter (2.95 feet) deep on April 13, and 1.1 meters (3.61 feet) deep as of 6:00PM on April 22. It rose 20 centimeters in about 10 days. In the adjacent Reactor 3, water is being injected at 6.8 tons/hour to cool the Reactor Pressure Vessel (RPV). TEPCO suspects that the water leaked from the RPV is leaking through the cracks in the wall that separates the Reactor 3 turbine building and the Reactor 4 turbine building.

　東京電力福島第一原子力発電所４号機で、放射性物質を含む汚染水が増え続け、タービン建屋の水位が約１０日間で２０センチ上昇したことが明らかに なった。原子炉建屋地下にも水深約５メートル、水量４０００トンの汚染水がたまっていることを経済産業省原子力安全・保安院が明らかにしており、その処理 が新たな課題として浮上している。

　東電は２号機の高濃度汚染水を集中廃棄物処理施設に移す作業を進めているが、施設の収容可能量は当初の半分程度になる見込みで、他号機の汚染水処理のめどは立っていない。

　東電によると、４号機のタービン建屋地下の水深は１３日に０・９メートル、２２日午後６時には１・１メートル。約１０日間に２０センチ上昇した。 隣接する３号機では原子炉冷却のため１時間当たり６・８トン注水されている。東電は炉から漏れた水が、３、４号機のタービン建屋を隔てる壁の亀裂などから ４号機側に漏れていると見ている。

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