*Updates are underlined.
All 6 units of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station have been shut down.
Unit 1 (Shut down)
- Explosive sound and white smoke were confirmed after the big quake
occurred at 3:36 pm on March 12. It was assumed to be hydrogen explosion.
- At 3:37 pm on March 25, we started injecting freshwater to the reactor
and are now injecting fresh water by a motor driven pump powered by the
off-site transmission line.
- At 10:11 am on December 10, in addition to water injection from water
feeding system, we started water injection from piping of core spray
system to the reactor.
The current water injection volume is approx. 4.3 m3/h from the reactor
feed water system and approx. 2 m3/h from the core spray system.
- We commenced injection of nitrogen gas into Primary Containment Vessel
at 1:31 am on April 7.
- At 11:22 am on August 10, we started cyclic cooling for the water in the
spent fuel pool by an alternative cooling equipment of the Fuel Pool
Cooling and Filtering System.
- On October 28, we completed installation of the cover for the Reactor
Building in order to contain dispersion of radioactive substances.
- At 4:04 pm on November 30, we started operation to inject nitrogen into
the reactor pressure vessel.
- At 6:00 pm on December 19, a full-scale operation of the PCV gas
management system started.
Unit 2 (Shut down)
- At approximately 6:00 am on March 15, an abnormal noise began emanating
from nearby Pressure Suppression Chamber and the pressure within the
chamber decreased.
- At 10:10 am on March 26, we started injecting freshwater to the reactor
and are now injecting fresh water by a motor driven pump powered by the
off-site transmission line.
- At 2:59 pm on September 14, in addition to water injection from water
feeding system, we started water injection from piping of core spray
system to the reactor.
The current water injection volume is approx. 1.8 m3/h from the reactor
feed water system and approx. 7.0 m3/h from the core spray system.
- At 5:21 pm on May 31, we started cyclic cooling for the water in the
spent fuel pool by an alternative cooling equipment of the Fuel Pool
Cooling and Filtering System.
- At 8:06 pm on June 28, we started injecting nitrogen gas into the Primary
Containment Vessel.
- At 6:00 pm on October 28, we put the gas management system of the reactor
containment vessel in operation.
- At 10:46 am on December 1, we started the nitrogen injection to the
Reactor Pressure Vessel.
Unit 3 (Shut down)
- Explosive sound and white smoke were confirmed at approximately 11:01 am
on March 14. It was assumed to be hydrogen explosion.
- At 6:02 pm on March 25, we started injecting fresh water to the reactor
and are now injecting fresh water by a motor driven pump powered by the
off-site transmission line.
- At 2:58 pm on September 1, we started water injection by core spray
system in addition to water injection by the reactor feed water system
piping arrangement.
The current water injection volume is approx 3.1 m3/h from the reactor
feed water system and approx. 6 m3/h from the core spray system.
- At 7:47 pm on June 30, we started cyclic cooling for the water in the
spent fuel pool by an alternative cooling equipment of the Fuel Pool
Cooling and Filtering System.
- At 10:23 am on December 29, due to the declining tendency of the suction
pressure of the primary system circulating pump of the spent fuel pool
alternative cooling system of Unit 3, we stopped the pump and then
stopped cooling of the spent fuel pool temporarily to conduct flushing
of the intake side strainer of the pump (water temperature at the
stoppage: approx. 12.4°C). After that we conducted flushing and the
suction pressure of the pump recovered, therefore at 0:09 pm on the same
day, we restarted the pump and resumed cooling of the spent fuel pool
(water temperature at resuming: approx. 12.5°C).
- At 8:01 pm on July 14, injection of nitrogen gas into the Primary
Containment Vessel started.
- At 4:26 pm on November 30, we started operation to inject nitrogen into
the reactor pressure vessel.
Unit 4 (Outage due to regular inspection)
- At around 6 am on March 15, we confirmed the explosive sound and the
sustained damage around the 5th floor rooftop area of Reactor Building.
- At 12:44 pm on July 31, we started cyclic cooling for the water in the
spent fuel pool by an alternative cooling equipment of the Fuel Pool
Cooling and Filtering System. (From 1:28 pm to 3:07 pm on December 28,
we conducted injection of hydrazine to spent fuel pool of Unit 4 through
the circulating cooling system.)
- At 10:58 am on November 29, in order to decrease more salinity, we
installed Ion exchange equipment and started the operation of such
equipment.
- At this moment, we don't think there is any reactor coolant leakage
inside the primary containment vessel.
Unit 5 (Outage due to regular inspection)
- Sufficient level of reactor coolant to ensure safety is maintained.
- At 5:00 am on March 19, we started the Residual Heat Removal System Pump
in order to cool the spent fuel pool.
- At 2:45 pm on July 15, we started the operation of the original Residual
Heat Removal System (System B) by its original seawater pump.
- At 10:11 am on December 22, since we finished the recovery work of
seawater pump (System B) of equipment water cooling system, we made a
trial run. At 11:25 am on the same day, we confirmed no abnormalities
and restarted the operation.
- At this moment, we don't think there is any reactor coolant leakage
inside the primary containment vessel.
Unit 6 (Outage due to regular inspection)
- Sufficient level of reactor coolant to ensure safety is maintained.
- At 10:14 pm on March 19, we started the Residual Heat Removal System
Pump of Unit 6 to cool down Spent Fuel Pool.
- At 2:33 pm on September 15, we started separately cooling the reactor
through the Residual Heat Removal System and the spent fuel pool through
Equipment Cooling Water System and Fuel Pool Cooling System.
- At this moment, we do not think there is any reactor coolant leakage
inside PCV.
Others
- At around 10 am on June 13, we started the operation of the circulating
seawater purification facility installed at the screen area of Unit 2
and 3.
- At 8 pm on June 17, we started operation of Water Treatment Facility
against the accumulated water. At 6:00 pm on July 2, we started the
circulating injection cooling to inject the water, which was treated by
the accumulated water treatment system, to the reactors through the
buffer tank.
- At 7:41 pm on August 19, we started treatment of accumulated water by
parallel operation of one line from the cesium adsorption instrument to
the decontamination instrument and the other treatment line of the
cesium adsorption instrument No.2.
- At 2:06 pm on October 7, we started to spray purified accumulated water
brought from Unit 5 and 6 continually in order to prevent dust scattering
and potential fire outbreaks from the cut down trees.
- On October 28, we started installation of the water proof wall at the
sea side, in front of the existing shore protection, Units 1-4, in order
to contain marine pollution by underground water.
- At 12:25 pm on December 13, we started the re-circulating operation of
desalination facility (reverse osmosis membrane type) for the purpose of
suppression of condensed water after desalination treatment.
- Since December 22, one of the atmospheric temperatures of Unit 1 Primary
Containment Vessel (PCV) monitored by the Containment Atmospheric
Monitoring System had risen (the atmospheric temperature of the PCV on
December 22 was approx. 38°C, at 7 pm on December 27 was approx. 49°C).
The other temperatures had not risen, so we conducted a survey from 9 am
to 10 am on December 28, and we confirmed that there are no problems.
From 11:00am to 12:15pm on the same date, to identify cause with
monitoring, we adjusted the volume of Nitrogen injection, from approx.
8 Nm3/h to approx.18 Nm3/h, and emission of the gas management system,
from approx. 23 Nm3/h to approx.30 Nm3/h, as of before December 22. The
temperature, the maximum went up to approx. 54.6°C at 6 pm on December
28, fell to approx. 52.3°C at 10 am and 1 pm on December 29.
Other two temperature indicators were in gradual increases, but now the
two are stable.
The second: (Maximum) approx. 34.9°C at 9:00 pm on December 28 →
approx. 34.8°C at 1:00 pm on December 29.
The third: (Maximum) approx. 39.2°C at 1:00 am on December 29 →
approx. 39.2°C at 1:00 pm on December 29.
We are planning to identify cause with monitoring continuously.
- At 3:22 pm on December 28, we started to transfer accumulated water from
the basement of turbine building of Unit 2 to the Centralized Radiation
Waste Treatment Facility (Miscellaneous Solid Waste Volume Reduction
Treatment Building [High Temperature Incinerator Building] and the
Process Main Building).
- At 10:12 am on December 29, TEPCO staff observed a water leakage from
the imperceptive leak in a hose around the concentrated water storage
area of water desalinations (reverse osmosis membrane) while on patrol.
We confirmed that filtrate water*, transferred with the hose from the
filtrate tank to the boiler tank of the evaporative concentration
apparatus, leaked from the water leakage. Just to be safe, we
investigated nuclide analysis for the water, and the nuclide was bellow
measurable limit. After that, we stopped transferring filtrate water,
and filled the hole with tape, and the leaked water is now an average of
a drop every two minutes. We are planning to replace the hose. The leaked
filtrate water will not expand around there because there are no street
gutters.
* filtrate water (freshwater): Water from Sakashita Dam
