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Japan Does Not Face Another Chernobyl

online.wsj.com

11–20 of 74 posts

Re: Japan Does Not Face Another Chernobyl

#11
post #6
post #5

This is a bad article. 1.) He argues that the three mile island accident means that the containment vessel will hold now. Even if they were the exact same reactor design, that doesn't logically follow, but they aren't the same design which gives even less credence to this argument. 2.) He says that once the reactor is flooded with water they won't have to do any more pressure releases. Again, I don't see how that fol…

1.) Reactors aren't magic. They have very well defined properties. It's pretty easy to calculate if a containment vessel will hold. This type of engineering happens every day in every building you go in and every car you ride. 2.) The containment structure is quite large, and the residual heat is relatively low. There is a lot of water there, presumably too much for the residual heat to boil. (The water normally flow…

Three reactors are affected, and two plants, Fukushima and Onagawa. I would say that an earth quake and tsunami is outside the well defined.

Re: Japan Does Not Face Another Chernobyl

#12
post #8
post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

1.) Reactors aren't magic. They have very well defined properties. It's pretty easy to calculate if a containment vessel will hold. This type of engineering happens every day in every building you go in and every car you ride. 2.) The containment structure is quite large, and the residual heat is relatively low. There is a lot of water there, presumably too much for the residual heat to boil. (The water normally flow…

I'm not trying to convince anyone that the containment vessel will fail or that they will have to do more steam releases. I'm simply saying that the arguments presented in the article are illogical.

[deleted]

Re: Japan Does Not Face Another Chernobyl

#13
post #5

This is a bad article. 1.) He argues that the three mile island accident means that the containment vessel will hold now. Even if they were the exact same reactor design, that doesn't logically follow, but they aren't the same design which gives even less credence to this argument. 2.) He says that once the reactor is flooded with water they won't have to do any more pressure releases. Again, I don't see how that fol…

> He says that once the reactor is flooded with water they won't have to do any more pressure releases. Again, I don't see how that follows.

He's just not stating the (true) premise that the seawater will be able to absorb the heat; he's implying it and relying on it. That doesn't make the article illogical, it makes it mildly enthymematic.

Re: Japan Does Not Face Another Chernobyl

#14
post #8
post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

1.) Reactors aren't magic. They have very well defined properties. It's pretty easy to calculate if a containment vessel will hold. This type of engineering happens every day in every building you go in and every car you ride. 2.) The containment structure is quite large, and the residual heat is relatively low. There is a lot of water there, presumably too much for the residual heat to boil. (The water normally flow…

I'm not trying to convince anyone that the containment vessel will fail or that they will have to do more steam releases. I'm simply saying that the arguments presented in the article are illogical.

This isn't logic, this is science. Have you done experiments with large amounts of radioactive material that verify your hypothesis?

Re: Japan Does Not Face Another Chernobyl

#15
post #11
post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

1.) Reactors aren't magic. They have very well defined properties. It's pretty easy to calculate if a containment vessel will hold. This type of engineering happens every day in every building you go in and every car you ride. 2.) The containment structure is quite large, and the residual heat is relatively low. There is a lot of water there, presumably too much for the residual heat to boil. (The water normally flow…

Three reactors are affected, and two plants, Fukushima and Onagawa. I would say that an earth quake and tsunami is outside the well defined.

So earthquakes and tsunamis can alter physics making the impossible possible? If it's impossible for the rods to get hot enough to melt steel, then how does an earthquake followed by a tsunami change that? Somehow I think that you're latching on to the wrong part of the argument there.

Re: Japan Does Not Face Another Chernobyl

#17
post #11
post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

1.) Reactors aren't magic. They have very well defined properties. It's pretty easy to calculate if a containment vessel will hold. This type of engineering happens every day in every building you go in and every car you ride. 2.) The containment structure is quite large, and the residual heat is relatively low. There is a lot of water there, presumably too much for the residual heat to boil. (The water normally flow…

Three reactors are affected, and two plants, Fukushima and Onagawa. I would say that an earth quake and tsunami is outside the well defined.

[deleted]

Re: Japan Does Not Face Another Chernobyl

#18
post #15
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Three reactors are affected, and two plants, Fukushima and Onagawa. I would say that an earth quake and tsunami is outside the well defined.

So earthquakes and tsunamis can alter physics making the impossible possible? If it's impossible for the rods to get hot enough to melt steel, then how does an earthquake followed by a tsunami change that? Somehow I think that you're latching on to the wrong part of the argument there.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/14/us-japan-quake-idU...

"Nuclear fuel rods at one of the reactors may have become became fully exposed raising the risk they could melt down and cause a radioactive leak, Japanese news agency Jiji said."

Re: Japan Does Not Face Another Chernobyl

#19

That article makes it sound like the decision to use graphite is stupid and will never be made again. This isn't true, a lot of the gen-4 designs are graphite-moderated.

Gen IV designs wont even be available to build before 2030. Your comment seems to imply that reactors with graphite are being built right now.

Re: Japan Does Not Face Another Chernobyl

#20
post #4

With everything the Japanese are passing through at least they have some good news! I hope there will be a good ending to this !

Not sure I would describe the permanent loss of a critical power plant as "good news," but the aversion of a large radiation leakage is certainly less bad.
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