(Updated) #Fukushima I Nuke Plant: Former PM Hatoyama Says Chlorine-38 WAS Detected, Despite TEPCO's Retraction

(Update) Hatoyama says in his Nature article that his team had the TEPCO data on chlorine-38 re-analyzed, and came to the conclusion that chlorine-38 was in the water in the basement of Reactor 1, and the density was 1.6 million becquerels/milliliter, just as TEPCO had originally reported. (reading the Japanese translation by Nature Asia.) About his thinking on Reactor 3 nuclear explosion, go to my new post.

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Back in March and April, there was a little fuss about recriticality happening in one or more of the reactors at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant because of the announcement by TEPCO of the detection of chlorine-38 in the water in the turbine building. Based on that announcement, Hiroaki Koide of Kyoto University was the first researcher (I think) in Japan who said recriticality may have happened.

Chlorine-37, stable isotope in seawater may acquire neutron and become unstable chlorine-38. The source of neutron? Fissioning uranium somewhere nearby.

Then, TEPCO denied it later, as one of many "mistakes" they supposedly made in identifying the radionuclides.

But now, apparently in the Nature magazine article that he wrote with a DPJ politician in Japan's Lower House, he says the following, according to Yomiuri Daily (English) (12/16/2011):

In the article, Hatoyama criticizes Tokyo Electric Power Co., the operator of the crippled plant, for disclosing only limited information to Diet committees. He also hints at the possibility of recriticality at the plant and says there is still much about the crisis that needs clarification, including the state of the molten fuel within the nuclear reactors.

Hatoyama also says that he and Taira obtained data on samples of contaminated water TEPCO obtained from the basement of the plant's No. 1 reactor and asked an outside research institute to reanalyze them.

Results showed that radionuclide chlorine 38, one of the isotopes released during recriticality, "was indeed present," he claims.

TEPCO reported at one point that it found chlorine 38 in the sampled water, but the utility later retracted that statement, saying there was a mistake in the analysis.

The Japanese version of this article says exactly the same. And the very interesting thing is that hardly anyone paid attention when the article came out on December 15 in Japanese. The number of tweets for the article is only 12. I saw the headline of the article at Yomiuri, but I didn't think much of it at all and skipped it, partly because I don't care to read anything this former PM of Japan, whose nickname is "space alien", writes.

But to give him some credit, he held a weekly study group in the early weeks and months of the nuclear crisis, inviting researchers who were then ridiculed by the mainstream media and politicians as "extreme" - those who said the Fukushima I Nuke Plant accident and the resultant radiation contamination were far more serious than admitted by the government and the MSM.

Judging by the number of Japanese readers retweeting the Japanese version of Yomiuri article that I just tweeted, it is news to them, too.

The title of the article is "Hatoyama: Nationalize Fukushima N-plant". A boring title, on purpose, probably, so that no one reads it. TPTB couldn't afford to attract attention to "recriticality" when they were about to announce a cold shutdown of the plant. Yomiuri did its patriotic duty.

(H/T to enenews for noticing the details beyond the headline.)

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Ex-Fuku I Worker Talks: "TEPCO Is a Terrible Company"

Toshio Kimura gave a talk at a rally in Kochi Prefecture on April 29. (That happened to be the day when the pro-nuke scientist rather cheerfully proclaimed that the Fukushima reactors had had meltdowns on a national TV.) He had long left TEPCO at the time of March 11 accident, but he used to work at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant.

He evacuated with his family to Kochi Prefecture right after the accident.

(Translated and captioned by Tokyo Brown Tabby)

His talk continued but Tabby couldn't find the video for that part. So, this is what he said after the video above ended:

As to the situation of the plant, 70% of the fuel in Unit 1 have melted. I haven't looked at the most recent data, but the reactor pressure is increasing, the radiation dose inside the containment vessel is increasing, and iodine-131 is not decreasing. It has started to decrease a bit recently, though. All this means is there definitely has been re-criticality until recently. Because, as you know, the half life of iodine-131 is only 8 days. And yet, after more than a month from the accident, we still see an increase in the level of iodine-131. That itself proves there has been re-criticality, because otherwise iodine shouldn't have been produced. A neutron hits the atom of uranium-235, the atom splits, and iodine-131 is produced. That's how the nuclear fission occurs. And through the mechanism that can be explained by Einstein's theory of relativity, heat is produced. The heat boils water to create steam, and the steam spins the turbin. The turbines are connected in series and drive the electrical generator to produce electricity. This is the mechanism of electricity generation.

Iodine-131 is not produced unless neutrons cause nuclear fission. That's why I'm saying there has been re-criticality. Nuclear Safety Commission won't admit it. TEPCO won't admit it. The government won't admit it. But really there has been re-criticality until very recently. This is the fact. Any professional with the knowledge of physics of nuclear reactor can tell. This re-criticality issue is one of the things they are hiding from you.

Another lie is that 0.24 microsievert/h is safe. This is wrong.

These are the things I wanted to tell you today. Here in Kochi, you don't have to worry too much because Kochi is quite far from Fukushima. But please look at the radiation dispersion forecast by the German Weather Service. If you notice the north-east wind is blowing throughout Japan, don't ever let children get wet in the rain. And women who want to have children in the future. Don't let them go outside on such days. We, middle-aged men are okay, including me.

It's because cesium-137 is dangerous. Its half life is 30 years. It's dangerous because it tends to accumulate in muscles. Men have relatively more muscle. Even if cesium-137 gets absorbed inside their bodies, it spreads thinly throughout their muscles. On the other hand, women don't have much muscle, and the absorbed cesium tends to concentrate in the organs like mammary gland and uterus. It may increase the incidence of breast cancer. But this is something you can prevent if you have the knowledge. If you have to go outside on such days, please wet the gauze inside the mask first and put on the mask before you go out.

Also, you have to be careful with iodine, too, while it is still released. Iodine accumulates in seaweed and it is easily absorbed from your hair. So, one way to prevent iodine absorption is to put on a hat so that your hair won't get wet from the rain.

You haven't heard about such things, have you? Nobody tells you that. The government doesn't tell, either. But I wanted to let you know. That's why I came here today.

I don't want to talk too long, but one last thing.

I hear some wise old men protected a very beautiful fountain located within the radius of 30km from Chernobyl plant. How they protected it is mysterious. I studied nuclear energy intensively and I studied physics to some extent. But still I believe in an invisible power. Those wise old men didn't evacuate after the accident. How did they protect the fountain? By prayer. I'm not sure how many of you believe in the power of prayer. But if you can believe in it, even if just a little, then please pray in the morning that the Fukushima-1 nuke plant may rest in peace. And remember, we've benefited from radioactivity because it produces electricity. So, please pray that the radiation will be neutralized and vanished by our sense of gratitude and our love. I hope we'll pull together and pass that prayer over to the next generation.

That's all I had to say. Thank you.

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TEPCO's #Fuku I Sub-Drain Density Measurement Shows Increase in Late July and Mid August

According to TEPCO's press release on September 17, there were increases in radioactive cesium in the sub-drain of Reactor 1 in late July, then mid August, and in early September. From mid August to early September, iodine-131 was also detected.

This happened most noticeably in Reactor1's sub-drain, but small increases are discernible in Reactor 2's sub-drain, too. (For the sub-drains for other Reactors, see TEPCO's PDF.)

By the way, in a separate presentation, TEPCO says it doesn't quite know exactly what the pressure or the water level is inside the Containment Vessel or the Reactor Pressure Vessel. In the press conference, they didn't quite seem to know what temperature they were measuring. The presentation is in Japanese only. I'll link if they post the English version.

TEPCO and the government are talking about what to do when the "cold shutdown" is finally achieved. How they determine the "cold shutdown" without knowing the pressure or the temperature remains mystery. They are in no hurry to find out where the corium may be, either.

(H/T viola)

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Japanese Researcher: Recriticality in July and August? (UPDATED)

Yoyo Hinuma, currently at University of California San Diego, says recriticality may have happened in one of the three reactors at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant in late July and again in mid August, releasing the largest amount of radioactive materials since April.

I cannot find much about the researcher, other than he was at MIT before, and that he has published papers in peer-reviewed magazines.

The article below says there was a criticality in March, but I don't know if the reporter is referring to the explosion events in March or the recriticality in one of the broken reactors as some researchers have alleged and hypothesized.

(UPDATE: I totally forgot about the report by the UC San Diego researchers that radioactive sulphur of Fukushima origin was detected in California in late March, indicating on-going chain reaction. So the Playboy magazine reporter may be right. To recap, chlorine in the seawater being injected back then captured neutron, turning to radioactive sulphur.)

(Of all magazines) the article appeared in the Weekly Playboy magazine in Japan.

Part from Shukan Playboy Japan (9/12/2011):

...実は公的機関が発表している放射線量の数値で、不可解な動きが計測されているのだ。それは、7月末から8月にかけて発生した放射線量の大幅な上昇。3月の事故直後から、事態の深刻さをネット上での論文発表などで訴え続けてきた日沼洋陽工学博士はこう解説する。

... Indeed, there are some inexplicable numbers reported on the air radiation levels by the government agencies. That is, a big rise in the radiation levels from late July to mid August. Dr. Yoyo Hinuma, who has published papers on the net about the seriousness of the situation since the beginning of the accident in March, explains.

「私は福島第一原発1～3号機のいずれかで、メルトダウンした核燃料が連鎖的に核分裂する『再臨界』が発生し、4月以降では最大量の放射性物質が施設外へ漏れ出したと考えています。時期は7月28日から31日頃と、8月19日から21日頃の2回。放射物質の大量流出は、発表数値が実際よりも低めではないかと疑われている東京都や横浜市の線量測定データからもはっきりと読み取れる科学的事実です」

"I think there was a recriticality in which the melted fuel started a chain reaction again in one of the reactors at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant, and that the largest amount of radioactive materials since April was released from the plant. It may have happened twice. The first was between July 28 and 31. The second was between August 19 and 21. That the large amount of radioactive materials were released can be clearly seen in the radiation survey data in Tokyo and Yokohama City, where it is suspected that the announced radiation levels are lower than the actual levels. So it's a scientific fact."

例えば、東京都発表のデータでは、8月19日の最大線量が前日の約1.4倍となる0.0865マイクロシーベルトを記録。この日には横浜市でも0.051マイクロシーベルトと、こちらは3月末並みの線量が観測されている。

For example, according to the data released by the Tokyo Metropolitan government, the air radiation level on August 19 was 0.0865 microsievert/hour (maximum), 1.4 times as high as the previous day. On the same day, Yokohama City measured 0.051 microsievert/hour, the level last recorded in late March.

「さらに詳しくデータを分析してみると、7月よりもよりはっきりと数値が上昇している8月のほうでは、規模が大きく継続時間が長い『即発臨界』という分裂反応が起きたと推定されます。これによって大量発生した放射性のセシウムやヨウ素などが首都圏にも達し、線量を増大させたと考えていいでしょう」（日沼氏）

"Further analyzing the data, we find that August saw a more definite rise than July. It may have been caused by the so-called "prompt criticality" which is bigger and lasts longer. The large amount of radioactive cesium and radioactive iodine released as the result may have reached the Tokyo Metropolitan area, raising the air radiation level", says Dr. Hinuma.

振り返ってみれば、東京都と神奈川県の「下水脱水汚泥」から高い数値の放射性ヨウ素131が検出され始めたのも7月後半から。ヨウ素131の半減期は8日間なので、3月の臨界で発生したものが7月以降になってから検出されることはありえない。また8月には、都内各区の数十ヶ所の砂場で安全基準値を大幅に上回る放射線量が測定され、砂を全交換するまで使用禁止の措置がとられた。だが、その砂場のほとんどが7月以前の計測では基準値以下だったのだ。

Looking back, it is since the end of July that the high level of iodine-131 have started to show up in the "dehydrated sewer sludge" in Tokyo and Kanagawa Prefecture. Half life of iodine-131 is 8 days, so it couldn't have come from the criticality happened in March. Also in August, radiation that exceeded the safety standard was detected in tens of sandboxes in the parks where children play, and the use of the sandboxes was prohibited until the sand was replaced. But before July, air radiation at most of these sandboxes measured lower than the safety standard.

この夏、福島第一原発で再臨界が少なくとも二度発生、新たに放射性物質が降り注いでいる可能性が高いと言わざるを得ない。

We'd have to admit that there is a high possibility that the recriticality happened this summer at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant, at least twice, and fresh radioactive materials are being released.

I checked the Tokyo Metropolitan government's official measurement of air radiation in Shinjuku. The maximum levels recorded on July 30 and August 19 are indeed elevated:

July 29: 0.0697 microsievert/hour
July 30: 0.0735 microsievert/hour
July 31: 0.0610 microsievert/hour

August 18: 0.0621 microsievert/hour
August 19: 0.0865 microsievert/hour
August 20: 0.0605 microsievert/hour

For July and August, the maximum air radiation level recorded in Tokyo is in 0.06 microsievert/hour range, and does not exceed 0.07 microsievert/hour, except for these two days.

Iodine-131 detected in sewer sludge in mid August in Tokyo and in Oshu City in Iwate Prefecture (among others) is attributed to the medical use, because there was no corresponding increase in radioactive cesium. Also in the case of Tokyo, radioactive iodine has been continuously detected in sewer sludge since they started to take measurements in May.

However, iodine-131 detection in sewer sludge is NOT the reason why Dr. Hinuma thinks there were two recriticality events at Fukushima I; it is what the Playboy reporter lists as a supporting evidence.

I do want to point out though that when Fukushima Prefecture detected tellurium-132 in the early morning of March 12 - that is, before the explosion of Reactor 1 building - in Namie-machi and other locations outside the plant including Minami Soma City, 25 kilometers from the plant (and they didn't bother to tell anyone for nearly 3 months), there was no concurrent, significant detection of iodine-131 and radioactive cesium even though this was clearly a precursor to the explosive event that took place that afternoon

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Haruki "the Detarame (Falsehood)" Madarame's Furious Backtracking on His Remark about Recriticality in Reactor 1 at #Fukushima I Nuke Plant

He senses a danger that his cushy and prestigious position as the head of the Nuclear Safety Commission is in jeopardy over his alleged remark which may have caused the delay in cooling the Reactor 1 RPV.

It is hard to believe he is a scientist and not a lawyer or politician. With that fine parsing ability of the words, he could make a wonderful assistant to a certain President of the United States (there are many candidates).

First, it was reported (see my post) that when Japan's Prime Minister Kan sought the advice from Madarame regarding the seawater injection to the Reactor 1 Reactor Pressure Vessel (RPV) on the evening of March 12 (by which time, now we all know, the entire core melted down) Madarame said:

"There is a possibility of recriticality if seawater is injected."

After that remark was publicly announced at the government-TEPCO joint press conference, Madarame was furious, and took it as a personal insult (see my post). His rebuttal?

"I couldn't have said such a thing."

But then, a talk ensued among the concerned parties including Madarame, and a "compromise" remark emerged. Now, Madarame's remark is modified thus:

"The possibility of recriticality if seawater is injected is not zero."

To an uncritical, non-scientific mind, that still means "there is a possibility".

Not so. The latest narrative coming from this ex-Tokyo University professor and current chief of the Nuclear Safety Commission who assured PM Kan that "the nuclear reactors at Fukushima are OK, they will never explode" on their trip to the plant on March 12 morning is this (from Yomiuri Shinbun article in Japanese):

"When I say 'the possibility is not zero', it means 'it is practically zero'."


Let me know when you figure that out.

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#Fukushima Blame Game: "I Didn't Say That," Says Madarame about Recriticality

His assessment that seawater might cause recriticality in the Reactor 1 was what supposedly prompted Prime Minister Kan to order TEPCO to halt the seawater injection on the night of March 12, as I reported in my post yesterday.

Now, Madarame, the head of the Nuclear Safety Commission and ex-Tokyo University Professor, says "I didn't say that."

I'm sure that's the case, Mr. Madarame. Just like the comment you say you didn't make, that the 20 millisieverts/year radiation for school children is acceptable, or your current position that you knew from the beginning that it was a core meltdown and told the government so.

Asahi Shinbun (5/21/2011):

　班目春樹・原子力安全委員長は２１日夜、朝日新聞の取材に対し、政府・東電統合対策室の会見について「再臨界の危険性があるなどと私は言っていない。侮辱と思っている」と反論した。

Responding to the press conference earlier by the government/TEPCO consolidated headquarters to deal with Fukushima I Nuke Plant accident, Haruki Madarame, chief commissioner of the Nuclear Safety Agency told Asahi Shinbun on the evening of May 21 that he "didn't say there was a risk of recriticality. I feel insulted."

　会見で配布された海水注入をめぐる事実関係の発表文には、「原子力安全委員長から、『再臨界の危険性がある』との意見が出された」などと記されていたが、班目委員長は「発表文は東電と官邸と保安院が作ったもの。原子力安全委員会として抗議する」と話した。

The announcement distributed at the press conference regarding the timeline of the seawater injection said "Chief commissioner of the Nuclear Safety Commission was of the opinion that "there was a danger of recriticality"." But Madarame said, "That announcement was made by TEPCO, the Prime Minister's Office, and NISA. We will protest as the Nuclear Safety Commission."

　会見には安全委事務局の加藤重治内閣府審議官も同席していたが、班目委員長の発言は否定していなかった。

The Nuclear Safety Commission's secretary Shigeharu Kato was present at the press conference, but he didn't deny the remark allegedly made by Madarame.

Haruki Madarame is increasingly known in Japan among nuclear critics and opponents as "Detarame" Haruki, which rhymes nicely with his family name Madarame. "Detarame" in Japanese means "outrageous nonsense, lie, falsehood".

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