Ikata Nuclear Power Plant
| Ikata Nuclear Power Plant | |
|---|---|
The Ikata NPP, August 2006
|
|
 Location of Ikata Nuclear Power Plant in Japan
|
|
| Country | Japan |
| Coordinates | 33°29′27″N 132°18′41″E / 33.49083°N 132.31139°ECoordinates: 33°29′27″N 132°18′41″E / 33.49083°N 132.31139°E |
| Construction began | September 1, 1973 |
| Commission date | September 30, 1977 |
| Operator(s) | Shikoku Electric Power Company |
| Power generation | |
| Units operational | 2 x 566 MW 1 x 890 MW |
| Average generation | 12,925 GWh |
The Ikata Nuclear Power Plant (伊方発電所 Ikata hatsudensho?, Ikata NPP) is a nuclear power plant in the town of Ikata in the Nishiuwa District of Ehime Prefecture, Japan. It is the only nuclear plant on the island of Shikoku. It is owned and operated by the Shikoku Electric Power Company. The plant has not generated nuclear power since Japan's 2011 nationwide shutdown of all nuclear plants in the aftermath of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster.
The plant is on a site with an area of 860,000 m2 (212 acres);[1] 47% of the site is "green",[clarification needed] by comparison the non-nuclear plants Shikoku Electric operates are 13.8, 20.1, 21.2 and 45.5%.[2]
Contents
Reactors on site[edit]
| Unit | Reactor type | Capacity | First criticality | Commissioned | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ikata - 1 | PWR | 566 MW | February 17, 1977 | September 30, 1977 | Mitsubishi 2-loop plant |
| Ikata - 2 | PWR | 566 MW | August 19, 1981 | March 19, 1982 | Mitsubishi 2-loop plant |
| Ikata - 3 | PWR | 890 MW | March 29, 1994 | December 15, 1994 | Mitsubishi/Westinghouse 3-loop plant[3] |
Important events[edit]
Accidents[edit]
On March 3, 2004 there was a coolant leak in Unit 3.[citation needed]
Technical achievements[edit]
On August 13, 2003 the maximum burnup for spent fuel was changed from 48,000 MWd/ton to 55,000 MWd/ton.
In January 2006 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries announced the completion of the replacement of the internal structure of the No.1 reactor. It was the world's first all-in-one extraction and replacement of the core internals of a PWR reactor. The upper and lower internals of the reactor were replaced in order to accommodate more control rods and allow for higher fuel burnup.[4]
In 2010, a partial MOX fuel core was loaded into the No.3 reactor for the cycle beginning February 24, 2010.[5]
Maintenance in 2011[edit]
On Sunday 4 September reactor no. 1 was shut down for regular inspections. These check-ups would last at least three months. At that time reactor No.3 was also shut down, although the normal inspections were long time finished before September. To resume operation, a stress test was required for all suspended reactors by the government, after the accidents in Fukushima. The Ehime prefectural government said it would decide whether to approve the resumption of operations after the results of the safety test came out. The Shikoku Electric Power Company said that if the No. 3 reactor did not resume operations, power supplies would be very tight in winter when electricity demand would be high. It was considered to restart a thermal power-plant which had been long out of use.[6]
Nuclear evacuation drill held in 2012[edit]
In February 2012 an evacuation drill was held in the prefecture Ehime and Shimane. The drill was done to mimic the situation of a reactor cooling failure after a huge earthquake. The evacuation-zones were expanded from 10 to 30 kilometers after the disaster in Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. In this evacuation drill some 10.000 people were taken out of the area round the nuclear power plant, with buses, helicopters and boats of the Maritime Self-Defense Force. The residents in the town of Ikata, commanded by disaster announcements on the radio to gather at a junior high school. From there they were taken by buses to a shelter some 50 kilometers further. This drill was the very first ever executed on this scale, and it was also the first time that so many people were evacuated out from their town.[7][8]
Unit 3 restart in 2016[edit]
On 19 April 2016, unit 3 received from NRA the final approval to restarting.[9] On 27 June, Shikoku Electric completed loading 157 fuel assemblies, of which 16 uranium-plutonium mixed oxide (MOX). Unit 3 is expected to begin generating power at the end of July, and restart commercial service in August 2016.[10]
Cultural references[edit]
In Godzilla vs. Destoroyah, Godzilla approaches the nuclear plant, and the actions of the Japan Self Defense Forces are stalled in action against the monster, fearing that a direct attack could cause a nuclear explosion and destroy the planet. Thankfully, the Super X-III weapon comes to the rescue and freezes the beast before he can do any more harm.[11]
References[edit]
- ^ Yonden (Japanese). Energy for Tomorrow. Page 3.
- ^ Yonden (Japanese). Yonden Activities to Protect the Environment. Archived July 22, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ Nuclear Power Plants - Japan
- ^ J. Uchiyama; K. Ajiki; H. Tamaki; H. Ouchi; Y. Nishioka (January 2006). "World's First All-In-One-Piece Extraction And Replacement Work Of PWR Reactor Internals" (PDF). Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 September 2007. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
- ^ [1]
- ^ Jaif (4 sept 2011) Another Japanese reactor stops for regular checks
- ^ NHK-world (16 February 2012)Nuclear evacuation drill held in Ehime Prefecture
- ^ JAIF (16 February 2012)Earthquake-report 349
- ^ "Completion of the 3-step conformity review on the New Regulatory Requirements for Ikata Power Station Unit 3" (PDF). www.nsr.go.jp. NRA. 20 April 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
- ^ "Ikata-3 Fuel Loading Completed, with Commercial Operation to Resume in August". www.prnewswire.com. 28 June 2016. Archived from the original on 6 July 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
- ^ Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995) MMT Review!
External links[edit]
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ikata Nuclear Power Plant. |
