Saturday, February 11, 2012

Temperature at Reactor 2's RPV Bottom Shoots Up to 75 Degrees Celsius

TEPCO's plant parameters on temperatures haven't been updated yet to reflect the number, but Jiji Tsushin reports that the temperature at the bottom of the Reactor Pressure Vessel of Reactor 2 at Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant shot up to 74.9 degrees Celsius as of 11PM on February 11, Japan Time.

The temperature at this location has been trending in the upper 60s, but TEPCO's Matsumoto and his junior PR manager (who can only read what's given to him) have been saying the temperature "is trending down". In TEPCO-speak, remaining at a high temperature is clearly "trending down", because it is not going up.

From Jiji Tsushin (2/11/2012):

東京電力は11日、福島第1原発2号機の原子炉圧力容器底部に3カ所ある温度計のうち、60度台後半で推移していた温度計が同日夕から再び上昇し始めたため、冷却水の注入量を毎時1トン増やして同14.6トンとした。同温度計は11日午後11時に74.9度を示す一方、同じ高さにある残り2カ所の温度計は35度程度で推移しているという。

One of the three thermometers at the bottom of the Reactor 2 Pressure Vessel that had been trending in the upper 60s started to rise again in the evening of February 11. In response, TEPCO has increased the amount of water being injected into the RPV by 1 tonne per hour to 14.6 tonnes per hour. As of 11PM on February 11, the thermometer showed 74.9 degrees Celsius, while the other two thermometers placed at the same height were trending around 35 degrees Celsius.

The temperature is the highest since the rising trend started on February 1, and the amount of water being injected into the Reactor 2 RPV now is the highest ever since March 11, 2011.

Since the margin of error may be as much as 20 degrees either way, 5 more degrees to go until the temperature at that location may be reaching 100 degrees Celsius.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Eh, might want to correct that headline. Is it "Shoots Up" or, more likely, "Shot Up"? Know you are working hard and just overlooked this.

arevamirpal::laprimavera said...

Yes, missing one "o". Thanks.

Anonymous said...

I have been charting the daily temperatures since Tepco released the hourly data a few days ago. http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/f1/images/2u_temp2-e.pdf

The trend has been UP (with higher daily maximum temps and higher daily minimum temps) for at least 3 days. It is very worrisome. I can send jpg of the charts if anyone would like to see them. I just need somewhere to email them.

arevamirpal::laprimavera said...

@anon at 3:28PM, admin at exskf dot com

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