Nuclear safety : 29 reactors at risk in the event of an earthquake

haak78/epictura

Published the 17.10.2017 at 15: 50

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Rust is the enemy of the piping. This is also true in the nuclear power plants… The nuclear safety Authority (ASN) alert on the state “degraded” pipes, pumping of 29 reactors out of the 58 account of the French nuclear reactors. Entire sections of pipe are eaten away by rust and the pumps of cold water could stop working in the event of an earthquake or flood, explains the ASN in a press release.

The problem is deemed serious enough to classify it at a level two on the international nuclear event scale (Ines), which has seven levels. It not happened in the past five years.

Decrease of the thickness of the walls

These pipes are indispensable. They allow to recover the water around the plant and transported to the heart of the reactors need to be cooled constantly. Because of the rust, the thickness of the lining of many pipes has decreased, and these latter could not withstand in the event of violent events.

In the event of an accident, such as an earthquake for example, the risk is that they do not resist. However, if they rupture, the pumping station could be flooded, the reactor would then not be cooled, and a nuclear accident could occur. This is what happened at Fukushima.

An urgent maintenance

The 29 reactors concerned are in the power plant of Belleville-sur-Loire, Cattenom, Chinon, Cruas, Dampierre-en-Burly, Golfech, Nogent-sur-Seine, france, Paluel, Saint-Alban and Saint-Laurent-des-Eaux. ASN specifies that nine more reactors are affected by a risk of partial loss of the cold source, within level 0 of the Ines scale.

These pipes will be changed, ensures that EDF, which manages the maintenance of these aging facilities. But the DSC press the company to do a better job. Because the maintenance is all the more essential that there is currently extending the plant life beyond 40 years.