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Decay HeatDecay heat usually refers to the energy released by radioactive decay from a sub-critical mass of nuclear material. The decay heat in the core of a recently-shutdown nuclear reactor can be several percent of the full-power heat production, because of the continuing decay of fission products. The heat load persists at a significant level for several days, and assuring its removal is an important part of any reactor 'safety case'. The heat removal is usually achieved through several redundant and diverse systems, and the heat is often dissipated to an 'ultimate heat sink' which has large capacity and requires no active power.
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