Fuel Removal
Unit 4
- At the time of the accident, although a hydrogen explosion occurred, all of the fuel rods had been transferred into and stored in the spent fuel pool as part of the periodic inspection. Therefore, they survived relatively undamaged.
- Fuel removal started on November 18, 2013 and is completed on December 22, 2014.
Completion status of transfer from Unit 4 to Common Pool
- ◯1533 is the number of fuel assemblies removed,
except for 2 new fuel assemblies which were removed before in 2012.
- ◯Breakdown of transferred assemblies by kind
Spent fuel1,331 assemblies/1,331 assemblies
Unirradiated (New) fuel202 assemblies/ 202 assemblies
- ◯Number of times of cask transportation:
71 times
as of December 22, 2014
Outline of the fuel removal from the spent fuel pool
The fuel assemblies stored in the fuel rack inside the Unit 4 spent fuel pool were taken out and transferred to the common pool located within the station site for centralized storage. This fuel removal operation started on November 18, 2013 and conducted with the following steps. Its completion date was December 22, 2014.
- (1)Relocate the fuel assemblies stored in the fuel rack inside the spent fuel pool, one by one, into a transportation container (cask) underwater using a fuel handling machine.
- (2)Lift up the cask from the spent fuel pool using a crane.
- (3)Conduct, on the floor as high as the operating floor, such works as closing the lid of the cask and decontaminating the cask.
- (4)Lift down the cask toward the ground using the crane to lay it on a trailer.
- (5)Transport the cask to the common pool using the trailer.
Explanatory videos
2014.12.22
Completion of fuel removal from Unit 4 spent fuel pool at Fukushima Daiichi NPS(5:47)
Summarized explanation (3:42)
Actual work (3:42)
Photos and videos
2014.12.22
President message about Completion of spent fuel removal of Unit 4(5:08)
2013.11.18
On-premise transportation container landing on the water and fuel removal
2013.11.20
Video taken underwater
2013.11.21
Cask transfer
2013.11.22
Work at the common pool
2013.11.26
Extraction of spent fuel
2013.11.27
Video taken underwater: extraction of spent fuel
2013.11.29
Cask transfer at common pool
Frequently asked questions
For frequently asked questions, please click here.
Other Units
Unit 1~3
- Since the fuel melted into a state called debris, it became difficult to apply conventional measures to remove it.
- To deal with this situation, we are planning to conduct the task in parallel with the development of tools and devices for removal, etc. during the decommissioning process, over the next 30 to 40 years.
Unit 5~6
- Having been spared from the worst effects of the earthquake and tsunami, these units’ fuel remains stored in a stable condition under a cooling system in the nuclear reactors and spent fuel pools.
- The decision to decommission these units was taken in December 2013. They will be utilized for full scale mock-up tests (demonstrations using actual equipment) for research and development in the areas of remote-controlled decontamination of reactor buildings, investigation of the inside of primary containment vessels, and devices to remove fuel debris. The work will be carried out in cooperation with research institutes including the International Research Institute for Nuclear Decommissioning (IRID) and manufacturers.
