A Robot to Remove Melted Nuclear Fuel from Fukushima Reactor
A remotely controlled robot will attempt to collect melted fuel debris from Japan's Fukushima Daiichi No. 2 reactor. The robot, outfitted with a telescopic pipe, will be deployed in October, marking the first attempt to remove debris since the 2011 meltdown. The cleanup operation has been significantly delayed, underscoring the difficulties of recovering after the earthquake and tsunami.
This is the first attempt to remove such material since the tragic meltdown of 2011.
Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings (TEPCO) exhibited the capabilities of a "telesco-style" extendable pipe robot at the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries shipyard in Kobe, Japan. The robot is scheduled to be sent into the Fukushima Daiichi No. 2 reactor by October, with the goal of testing debris removal from the primary containment tank.
However, this project is far behind schedule, with a delay of more than two years. The initial goal was to start extracting melted fuel in late 2021. The delays underline the enormous obstacles of recovering from the devastating magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami that hit in 2011.
During the demonstration, a device with tongs dropped from the telescopic pipe and successfully removed a granule from a pile of pebbles. TEPCO intends to remove less than 3 grams (0.1 ounce) of debris during the upcoming test at the Fukushima plant.
Yusuke Nakagawa, a TEPCO group manager for the fuel debris retrieval program, emphasised the significance of this milestone, stating, "We believe the upcoming test removal of fuel debris from Unit 2 is an extremely important step to steadily carry out future decommissioning work. It is important to proceed with the test removal safely and steadily."
The Fukushima Daiichi reactors still have almost 880 tonnes of highly toxic melted nuclear fuel. Critics claim that the government and TEPCO's target of finishing the cleanup in 30 to 40 years is too optimistic. Each reactor has various amounts of damage, necessitating careful planning to meet their specific conditions.
Understanding the nature of the melted fuel debris within the reactors is critical to the decommissioning procedure. Earlier this year, TEPCO launched four tiny drones into the No. 1 reactor's primary containment vessel to gather photographs from previously unreachable places.
A remote-controlled robot will attempt to remove melted fuel debris from Japan's Fukushima Daiichi No. 2 reactor.
The robot, equipped with a telescopic pipe, will be deployed by October, marking the first attempt to remove debris since the 2011 meltdown.
The cleanup process has faced significant delays, highlighting the challenges of recovering from the earthquake and tsunami.
Source: AP NEWS