Thursday, March 8, 2012

Photos of TMI Corium from Japan Atomic Energy Agency

JAEA published the photographs of the corium from the Reactor No.2 from the Three Mile Island nuclear accident in 1979.

Asahi Shinbun (3/7/2012) reports that the 60 samples of the TMI corium have been kept at JAEA since 1991. The samples, weighing 3 kilograms, were given to JAEA by Idaho National Laboratory as part of the international research collaboration.

According to Asahi, JAEA is planning to re-evaluate the samples as part of the basic research for decommissioning the reactors at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant.

Cross section of a corium sample, with the surface oxidized to show colors. Green is uranium dioxide. Brownish part is metals like zirconium, iron, nickel melted together (according to Asahi):


Cross section of a small 1-mm corium grain. Whitish color is where uranium and cladding melted and mixed (according to Asahi):

1 comments:

Atomfritz said...

OT:
Another nuclear cover-up in Germany uncovered...

Barrels of nuclear waste stored in the German scandal reactor of Brunsbuettel (which has been shutdown since an oxyhydrogen explosion scandal almost caused a reactor catastrophe) have been found completely rusted through and leaked. The company tried to cover-up this like the oxyhydrogen explosion before, until the regulatory authorities discovered the mess.

German media keeps low profile, almost nothing is being reported.
One photo is shown here: http://www.rtl.de/cms/news/rtl-aktuell/voellig-verrostete-atommuellfaesser-gefunden-1fd4b-51ca-17-1051304.html

This report also mentions the Brunsbuettel waste storage building (which cannot be entered anymore due to intense radiation up to half of a sievert) finally has been sealed now and radioactivity surveillance instrumentation being installed.

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