Shop

"Faulty Rods" details production problems with the zirconium casings used for fuel rods in nuclear power plants around the world. These rods serve as the first line of defense against radiation leaks in boiling-water reactors, and rod failure could play a role in a devastating meltdown. The manufacturer uses a "beta quenching" process intended to make the rods resistant to corrosion, but engineers who developed the process belive it is flawed. The NRC acknowledges that there has been an increase in fuel rod failures over the past two years, but the agency has done little to prevent potentially flawed fuel-rod casings from being shipped around the world.