Question

1) What were the failed safeguards in the Chernobyl disaster?

2) What could have been done to prevent the accident?

Please answer with details.

Answer 1

Ans 1) The Chernobyl disaster took place on April 26, 1986 because the reactor at the nuclear power plant located in Chernobyl, Ukraine, was blasted that lead to an explosion resulting in large amounts of radiation into the atmosphere. The various failed safeguards in this disaster were:

1)The uranium fuel used in the reactor of the nuclear power plant was overheated and melted through the protective barriers. This occurred because the reactor was not having a safety structure known as containment structure, that is a structure composed of concrete and steel dome over the reactor so to keep radiation inside the plant . Due to this the harmful radioactive elements like plutonium, iodine, strontium and caesium were scattered over a wide area.

2)The moderating material such as the graphite blocks used in the reactor caught fire due to such a  high temperature as air entered the reactor core. Consequently, it leads to the emission of radioactive materials into the environment.

Ans 2)The various mitigation and prevention steps taken to prevent this accident are:

a) Design safety of the reactors were modified.

b) Construction of a more secure and permanent structure was built.

c) Reinforced structures as a protective structure was made around the reactor.

d) Sensors were come into action to detect the temperature of the reactor to avoid overheating problems.