Fukushima apocalypse: Years of ‘duct tape fixes’ could result in ‘millions of deaths’

[PamW]

43. OK - let's assume 202 are fresh.

kristopher,

OK - we'll assume that 202 are fresh, hence highly radioactive, and hence capable of melting and releasing their stored inventory of radioactivity.

The other fuel rods have spent time in the pool so as to have the decay heat exponentially decay so they can't melt. If they can't melt, then the radioactive material that is trapped within them will stay trapped; just as the pigment in my water glass analogy above.

Now the statement was made in post #11 that the potential for radioactive release exceeded all the releases of atmospheric nuclear tests

http://www.democraticunderground.com/112757547#post11

So the question is whether the radioactivity in the 202 assemblies exceeds the radioactivity released in all the atmospheric nuclear tests.

By way of comparison; one of the consequences of the releases due to atmospheric test is the release to the environment of 10 metric tonnes of Plutonium:

http://www.clarku.edu/departments/marsh/projects/community/plutonium.pdf

From page 5:

About 10 metric tons of plutonium were released into the atmosphere during these tests.

The mass of 10 metric tonnes is 10,000 kilograms or roughly 22,000 pounds. ( A metric tonne is about 1.1 short tons )

So do you think that there are 22,000 pounds of fission products in the 202 assemblies? NO WAY!!

So using your own figures; the claim that this would release more radiation than all the atmospheric nuclear tests is a clear EXAGGERATION.

Q.E.D.

PamW