On March 10, 2004, Kakrapar-1 a 220MWe PHWR was operating at a power level of 73% full power. While carrying out certain maintenance work, power supply to all the adjuster rods of the Reactor Regulating System (RRS) failed and the rods became inoperable. Reactor power started rising slowly due to the presence of slight positive reactivity at that instant. Further, the automatic liquid poison injection system was inhibited at this time to prevent addition of boron to moderator, that would take place if there was any slight disturbance to core reactivity during on power refueling. With this the slow rise in reactor power could not be arrested by RRS and the reactor tripped on high differential temperature across steam generators. The reactor tripped at a power level of 98% FP as the trip settings had not been changed corresponding to the reduced operating power level. The fuel bundle power of the maximum rated channels crossed the Technical Specification limit but was within the safety limits. There was no failure of fuel and no increase in iodine activity in Primary Heat Transport system was observed during and after the event. The event is rated at level 2 on INES.
The Netherlands has agreed to allow Urenco to be used for the British military nuclear program. This clears the way for uranium enriched by Urenco to be used in nuclear weapons. With his decision, Foreign Minister Berendsen (CDA Christen Democrats) is departing from the principle that civilian and military nuclear applications must remain strictly separate. […]
Behnam Raeesian is an internationally recognized visual artist and poster designer from Iran, known for bold political and cultural works. Through exhibitions, workshops, jury roles, and collaborations with cultural institutions worldwide, he has built a strong voice in contemporary political graphic design. His projects confront complex issues such as nuclear risk and technological impact, transforming […]
Everywhere you look, the nuclear industry’s hype machine is in overdrive. Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, and the UK government all tout small modular reactors as the silver bullet for climate change and energy security. Tech billionaires are hiring nuclear veterans. Wall Street is whispering about “round-the-clock power” for artificial intelligence data centers. For those old enough […]
Kernenergie en veiligheid: A wargame sought to test if a major radiological release that would prompt the evacuation of millions of civilians in South Korea could distract key US allies from assisting and rebuffing an all-out military invasion of Taiwan. The short answer was yes. The game originally presumed that China, wanting to keep the […]
Big batteries and EVs to the rescue again as faults with new nuclear plant cause chaos on Nordic grids The Finnish nuclear power plant Olkiluoto was finally connected to the grid last year, at an estimated cost of €11 billion compared to the original budget of €3 billion. That cost blowout forced its developer, the […]
