Windscale Fire

Posted: August 25th, 2021

Student’s Name

Instructor’s Name

Course

Date

Windscale Fire

1. What type of Reactor was It?

In the history of the United Kingdom, the Windscale fire was the worst nuclear accidents ever witnessed. It was caused by mechanical failure of two graphite-moderated reactors, which, by then, were christened “piles.” In these types of reactors, carbon is used to make the un-enriched uranium usable source of energy. Notably, carbon accomplishes the outlined function by acting as a neutron moderator. Since graphite is a highly combustible material, its use in these reactors is normally carefully checked to avoid disasters. 

• What was the Cause of the Accident?

The accident resulted from misinformation and lack of adequate knowledge on how graphite behaves in the course of the annealing process. This activityhappens in low temperatures and the possibility of extreme irradiation is often limited. In the fateful day, routine heating of the first graphite reactor control blocks escalated, and this resulted in the adjoining uranium cartridges rapturing. Consequently, the oxidation process started following the exposure of uranium to high temperature. High volumes of radiation were released. In addition, huge flames of fire burst, and it took more than 16 hours to extinguish.

• What Was the Radioactive Damage of the Area?

By the time the disaster was arrested, it was established that massive melting of radioactive fuel, which was over ten tons, had settled at the core of the reactor. Tens of tons of radioactive iodine had been released into the atmospheres. The impact on the people was dire. The radiation released contaminated air in the UK and far beyond borders. The radioactive iodine released posed a health danger to the people of the affected regions. In particular, isotope iodine-131 is responsible for a wide range of cancers which people suffer from.