TEPCO to test one of the ALPS systems

March 31, 2013

Tokyo Electric Power Co. said Saturday it has begun a trial run of a new system able to remove about 60 types of radioactive substances from cooling water used in the Fukushima No. 1 plant's wrecked reactors.

Tepco testing new water decontamination system at Fukushima No. 1 plant

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/03/31/national/tepco-testing-new-water-decontamination-system-at-fukushima-no-1-plant/#.UVc9NTf1tEs

Kyodo

Full-fledged operation of the advanced liquid processing system (ALPS) will start in about four months after its performance is verified. Tepco said it plans to process 250 tons of irradiated water a day using the new multinuclide removal system, which has the capacity to dispose of up to 500 tons when fully operational.

ALPS has been installed to clean the contaminated water flowing through a 4-km loop and used to cool the crippled reactors. Unlike the existing system that can only remove radioactive cesium, ALPS can extract almost all radioactive substances except for tritium.

The new system is necessary to ensure the safe storage of processed water, according to Tepco.

Although the utility initially planned to start a test run by the end of December, its introduction was delayed after containers used to store processed wastewater were found to lack robustness. As Tepco has enhanced the containers’ durability, the Nuclear Regulation Agency approved the start of the trial run.

After the March 11, 2011, tsunami inundated the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, causing three catastrophic meltdowns, Tepco created a system in which water used to cool reactors 1 to 3 passes through the current system that removes radioactive cesium. The processed water is then stored in tanks.

March 30, 2013

[TEPCO will only test one of the three devices]

TEPCO to test new water decontamination device

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/20130330_02.html

The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant will begin testing a new device to decontaminate radioactive wastewater massing at the facility.

Tokyo Electric Power Company will test-run the device from Saturday. The device can filter 62 radioactive substances that older models could not remove.

Company officials say they will initially use just one of 3 such devices as they need to take a cautious approach to handling the high-level radioactive water.

TEPCO plans to test the device for about 4 months. The company has yet to indicate when it will test the remaining 2 devices and put them into full-scale operation.

TEPCO was expected to start the trial last September. But it was forced to suspend the plan after a storage vessel for the device was found to be unsafe.

The Nuclear Regulation Authority gave the go-ahead to the utility last week, after TEPCO submitted extra safety measures.

Radioactive water at Fukushima Daiichi is accumulating at a rate of about 400 tons every day. The device is considered crucial to securing safety at the site and preventing pollution to the environment.

Mar. 29, 2013 - Updated 21:25 UTC (06:25 JST)

March 29, 2013

http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/nu/fukushima-np/handouts/2013/images/handouts_130329_01-e.pdf

Overview of the Multi-nuclide Removal Equipment (ALPS) at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station