Thread: Paks (Hungary) Nuclear Power Plant - fuel damage occurred on 10 – 11 April 2003

You might heard of the accident which occured in Paks, Hungary this year (damage of fuel assemblies occurred on 10 – 11 April 2003 inside a cleaning tank).

Following flash animation shows how it happened... (detailed description of the accident (EVENT INVESTIGATION REPORT)."8.5. Chronological sequence of the events.")

Shortly: during the chemical cleaning of partially irradiated fuel assemblies, the cleaning device got overheated, and noble gas escaped.

I have always thought mankind is not prepared to control nuclear power...

Originally posted by muttski)mutt
translation of the flash would help...

Please refer to "8.5. Chronological sequence of the events" in the link I've given.

A short description (I'm not very good at technical english):
1.) fuel assemblies need to be cleaned, as deposits decrease performance of the reactor
2.) they are removed from the reactor in smaller packages
3.) afterwards inserted in a special device containing cleaning fluid (chemicals to remove deposits)
4.) the cooling system of the device is somehow damaged
5.) the cleaning device gets overheated, and some radioactive steam escapes

They managed to stop the process, cool down the affected cleaning device with the damaged fuel assemblies, before a chain reaction occured (or else cprogramming.com would miss me :°\).

The device was closed and insulated, and the plant is working (it covers Hungary's 40% energy needs).

Don't worry Carlos. A nuke power plant is designed so that even if all the cooling parts fail, it won't go critical. You can't turn a nuke plant into a bomb - you can just spew radiation around, which isn't nearly as bad. (Compare 500mph winds and 2000 degree heat and a lot of radiation with a little bit of radiation.)

Chernobyl... Three-mile island... not quite bombs, but they definitely did a lot of damage... just not particularly quickly.

I'd rather have Chernobyl than Hiroshima.

Originally posted by blackrat364
Don't worry Carlos. A nuke power plant is designed so that even if all the cooling parts fail, it won't go critical. You can't turn a nuke plant into a bomb - you can just spew radiation around, which isn't nearly as bad. (Compare 500mph winds and 2000 degree heat and a lot of radiation with a little bit of radiation.)

LOL. That is SO reassuring. I'll sleep so much better tonight.

I have to mention that we've got a little bit a Chernobyl, too (call me Rayman :°) ).

Hungary was not affected by the radiation, though there were some causalities (a few truck-drivers who were sent to Chernobyl shortly after the accident - some of them got cancer and died within a few years).

In the lands neighboured with Ukraine iodine-pills were given to the citizens; we were adviced not to go out in the rain, in the sun, not to eat vegetables or fruits, etc.

The real problem is that the former USSR kept the accident in secret for some days...