7/20/2011 Fukushima city sows sunflower seeds to decontaminate 'hot spot'

Source: Kyodo News via Japan Today
Date: Jul. 21, 2011 - 05:05AM JST


FUKUSHIMA — Fukushima city officials sowed sunflower seeds Wednesday at a plaza in the city as part of efforts to remove radioactive materials from the soil.

Sunflowers are said to absorb radioactive substances, and the 6,000-square-meter plaza, located on a hillside about 1 kilometer away from the prefectural government offices, is one of the so-called “hot spots” where radiation levels are sporadically higher than other areas.

7/21/2011 Chinese fast reactor starts supplying electricity

Source: World Nuclear News
Date: 7/21/2011

Exactly one year after achieving first criticality, China's experimental fast neutron reactor has been connected to the electricity grid.

At 10.00am today, the head of China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), Sun Qin, declared to workers and officials gathered in the Chinese Experimental Fast Reactor's (CEFR's) control room that the unit had successfully achieved grid connection.

Inside the control room of the CEFR (Image: CNNC)

The sodium-cooled, pool-type fast reactor has been constructed with some Russian assistance at the China Institute of Atomic Energy (CIEA), near Beijing, which undertakes fundamental research on nuclear science and technology. The reactor has a thermal capacity of 65 MW and can produce 20 MW in electrical power. The CEFR was built by Russia's OKBM Afrikantov in collaboration with OKB Gidropress, NIKIET and Kurchatov Institute.
...
Read full article here