Quote:
Originally Posted by Undertoad
No meltDOWN happened, which is what I insisted upon after you claimed there were multiple of them.
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So where did hydrogen come from? When Zircaloy rod cladding melts, an explosive hydrogen is created. Zirconium dioxide means hydrogen can exist in explosive concentrations. Both inside the containment vessel. And in those storage ponds. Same explosion happened in Three Mile Island when those rods melted.
American officials believe one storage pond was all but dry. Therefore rods in those ponds also melted. Hydrogen released - as in what then caused explosions in three reactor buildings. Of course, the official release from TEPCO denies all this. And then in the news conference, the reporter asked, "Where did the hydrogen come from?" TEPCO management said, "We'll get back to you on that." Because TEPCO denied fuel rods melted - the official line that also could not explain the hydrogen.
Completely meltdown as in what American officials were telling the Japanese on Tuesday. And then said they will soon have to send people into the reactor to save it - and then die. On Tuesday, those statements finally got the Japanese attention. And is why some TEPCO employees were replaced by JSDF people.
TEPCO is finally admitting that damage to at least one reactor is so great that it must be scrapped. The actual number is probably three. But the official information that UT is reading were denying any plants were permenantly damaged. TEPCO also refused to release temperature and pressure numbers that show what they should have done when to avert rod melting.
Fuel rods have melted. Nobody can inspect them to confirm it. But the chemistry, temperatures, and rods not covered in water says fuel rods have melted.
Future melting has been averted. After blunt words from American (and other) experts and other actions (ie all Americans were advised to leave), TEPCO finally did what was necessary to have water flowing in all plants (except maybe reactor 3). Among the statements that finally got TEPCO's attention were recommendations to prepare to bury at least one reactor in sand and concrete. TEPCO management was shocked. TEPCO management was denying their problem that severe. Which is the official information that UT is reading.
For five days, TEPCO denied any problem was serious. That rods could have melted. So the official releases denied rod melting. And did not explain where hydrogen came from.