Tokyo Electric Power Company's Fukushima contaminated water discharge facility. [Image source=Yonhap News]
Work to remove the nuclear fuel debris remaining in the reactor from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident in Japan is expected to begin on the 22nd.
According to foreign media such as Kyodo News and NHK on the 19th, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) held a press conference and stated, "We are conducting final on-site inspections, and if there are no issues, we will start removing the nuclear fuel debris through the piping leading to the containment vessel on the 22nd."
A newly developed pipe approximately 22 meters long will be inserted into the containment vessel of Reactor No. 2, and using remote control, a device attached to the end of the pipe will be used to experimentally remove nuclear fuel debris weighing less than 3 grams.
The newly developed pipe is a connection of pipes with diameters of 20 cm and 16 cm.
TEPCO expects the debris removal to take about two weeks. The recovered nuclear fuel debris will be stored in a dedicated container.
If this operation succeeds, it will be the first time in about 13 years since the 2011 nuclear accident that nuclear fuel debris is removed.
However, it is estimated that about 880 tons of nuclear fuel debris remain in Reactors 1 to 3 of the accident site, and even if this trial removal is successful, it is unclear whether it will continue until decommissioning, according to Kyodo News.
The Japanese government plans to decommission the Fukushima nuclear plant around 2051.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
