Cooling the nuclear reactor

With backup cooling pumps inoperative, Japanese officials are using seawater to cool fuel rods after an
earthquake, tsunami and explosion rocked a seaside nuclear power plant near epicenter of Friday’s quake.
How the plant works Increased Inside the reactor
40-year-old Fukushima Dai-ichi reactor applies heat from pressure
nuclear reactions in fuel rods directly to water, creating Steam to
steam, which drives an electricity-generating turbine. generator
Reactor building
There are six buildings at Fukushima;
Steam dryer
two others also have cooling problems Main
feedwater
Reactor vessel Steam line
separator

Fuel rods Recirculation

loop

How to tell if fuel

Reactor is inside rods are leaking
Nuclear core steel containment The amount of
dome within a Boron radiation measured
heavily shielded with gamma ray
building; explosion spectroscopy tells
What the quake did Shuts down how much the rods
affected building, reaction
Cut off power to pumps providing not dome have been
cooling water to fuel rods compromised
Nuclear core could overheat, increasing
© 2011 MCT
risk of meltdown, release of radiation Source: Reuters, Wall Street Journal Graphic: Lee Hulteng, Judy Treible