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Nuclear accidents characterization study guide, Summaries of Radiation Biology

Characterization of the Three Mile Incident, Chernobyl, and Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station Incident.

Typology: Summaries

2022/2023

Uploaded on 11/03/2023

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Accidents Characterization Study Guide
Three Mile Incident
oWhat Happened?
The Three Mile Island nuclear plant had two pressurized light-water
reactors. On March 28, 1979, a cooling malfunction caused part of the
core to melt in Reactor 2. Some radioactive gas was released
oWhere it Happened?
This happened on Three Mile Island in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
oWhy it Happened?
It happened because of a malfunction and operator error that resulted in
inadequate cooling water circulation to the reactor core causing it to
overheat and suffer a partial meltdown
oHealth Effects
Some health effects included psychological stress, radiation exposure
Chernobyl Accident
oWhat Happened?
On April 26, 1986, the Number Four RBMK reactor at the nuclear power
plant at Chernobyl, Ukraine, went out of control during a test at low-
power, leading to an explosion and fire that demolished the reactor
building and released large amounts of radiation into the atmosphere.
oWhere it Happened?
It happened in Chernobyl, Ukraine
oWhy it Happened?
The Chernobyl disaster occurred when technicians at nuclear reactor Unit
4 attempted a poorly designed experiment. They shut down the reactor's
power-regulating system and its emergency safety systems, and they
removed control rods from its core while allowing the reactor to run at 7
percent power.
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Accidents Characterization Study Guide  Three Mile Incident o What Happened?  The Three Mile Island nuclear plant had two pressurized light-water reactors. On March 28, 1979, a cooling malfunction caused part of the core to melt in Reactor 2. Some radioactive gas was released o Where it Happened?  This happened on Three Mile Island in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania o Why it Happened?  It happened because of a malfunction and operator error that resulted in inadequate cooling water circulation to the reactor core causing it to overheat and suffer a partial meltdown o Health Effects  Some health effects included psychological stress, radiation exposure  Chernobyl Accident o What Happened?  On April 26, 1986, the Number Four RBMK reactor at the nuclear power plant at Chernobyl, Ukraine, went out of control during a test at low- power, leading to an explosion and fire that demolished the reactor

building and released large amounts of radiation into the atmosphere.

o Where it Happened?  It happened in Chernobyl, Ukraine o Why it Happened?  The Chernobyl disaster occurred when technicians at nuclear reactor Unit 4 attempted a poorly designed experiment. They shut down the reactor's power-regulating system and its emergency safety systems, and they removed control rods from its core while allowing the reactor to run at 7 percent power.

o Health Effects  Health effects include acute radiation syndrome (resulting in the death of many), leukemia, cataracts, thyroid cancer, psychosocial effects  Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station o What Happened?  Following a major earthquake, a 15-metre tsunami disabled the power supply and cooling of three Fukushima Daiichi reactors, causing a nuclear accident o Where it Happened?  It happened in Ōkuma, Fukushima, Japan o Why it Happened?  Tsunami waves generated by the main shock of the Japan earthquake on March 11, 2011, damaged the backup generators at the Fukushima Daiichi plant. Although all three of the reactors that were operating were successfully shut down, the loss of power caused cooling systems to fail in each of them within the first few days of the disaster. Rising residual heat within each reactor’s core caused the fuel rods in reactors 1, 2, and 3 to overheat and partially melt down, leading at times to the

release of radiation.

o Health Effects with each Disaster  Health effects include mood disorders, PTSD, anxiety, increase in chronic diseases like diabetes