Photo/Illutration A dedicated container holding fuel debris from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant (Provided by the Japan Atomic Energy Agency)

The first melted fuel sample recovered from the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant arrived at a research facility in Ibaraki Prefecture to help devise methods for full-scale retrieval.

A truck carrying the debris in a dedicated container left the plant at 9:27 a.m. on Nov. 12 and arrived at the laboratory at 2:41 p.m. the same day, the Japan Atomic Energy Agency said.

Researchers will analyze the composition and structure of the 0.69-gram sample collected from the No. 2 reactor in detail over about a year at the facility in the town of Oarai.

“The amount is very small, but we believe that it will be enough to assess the situation inside the reactor,” an agency official said. “We want to make the most of the obtained debris and produce analysis results.”

The fuel debris will be divided for analysis at four divisions.

The agency said it will check the amount required at each division and determine priorities.

The sample is the first melted fuel collected from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, where three reactors melted down after the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami.

The No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 reactors contain an estimated 880 tons of nuclear debris that must be removed during the decommissioning process.

The Japan Atomic Energy Agency plans to consider retrieval methods based on analysis results, such as the debris hardness and the risk of an accidental nuclear chain reaction.

Tokyo Electric Power Co., the plant operator, previously said it would collect up to 3 grams of melted fuel from the No. 2 reactor on an experimental basis.

Related News