Fukushima water decontamination system shutdown after chemical leak
A trouble-prone system used to decontaminate radioactive water at Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant was switched off yesterday because of a chemical leak, its operator said.
A trouble-prone system used to decontaminate radioactive water at Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant was switched off yesterday because of a chemical leak, its operator said.
Hydrochloric acid, used to neutralise alkaline water being decontaminated, was found seeping from a pipe joint, Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) said.
The joint was wrapped in a vinyl bag to contain the leakage, TEPCO said, adding it was investigating the cause of the trouble.
About one litre of hydrochloric acid was contained in the bag.
The leak was found at one of three Advanced Liquid Processing System units designed to remove radioactivity from contaminated water at the plant, where a massive earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 sent nuclear reactors into meltdown.
The systems are expected to play a crucial role in treating huge amounts of toxic water accumulating at the plant.