Kyushu Electric Power (Kyuden) announced that the 1 cm hole found in No. 3 reactor piping system at the Genkai nuclear power plant was caused by corrosion from rain water. The damaged section of the pipe, which is located in the plant’s secondary cooling system, was found to be rusty with a 13 mm x 6 mm hole that was leaking steam. The piping is installed outside and covered with metal plating as well as insulation material for protection. However, it appears that rainwater was able to trickle through a gap in the metal sheets, damaging one of the pipes in the process. Kyuden are planning to replace all 15 pipes that serve the same purpose in the cooling system. It is not yet known when the work will be finished. Delays are now expected in resuming operations for the No. 4 reactor, which was scheduled to restart in May. Source: Mainichi Broadcasting Group, 4/3/2018
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
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