[ RadSafe ] Chinese fast reactor starts supplying electricity

[Peter Miller]

> I can take rad in stride, but tons of molten sodium, surrounded by
> water, would make me nervous.  

Why was liquid sodium selected as the coolant ?

It was a sodium leak that caused the shutdown of Japan's Monju fast-breeder 
reactor in 1995. Plant operators tried to cover up the accident, which didn't 
help their credibility, but did ensure continued shutdown. The spent fuel rods 
that were supposed to be re-processed at Monju remained at Fukushima, making 
that accident worse than it would have otherwise been. 

As for the Chinese fast-breeder reactor, one hopes they will do better than 
they've done with high-speed trains. 

-- Peter Miller
   Kamakura, Japan