A coupled mechanical/hydrologic model for WIPP shaft seals
Effective sealing of the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) shafts will be required to isolate defense-generated transuranic wastes from the accessible environment. Shafts penetrate water-bearing hard rock formations before entering a massive creeping-salt formation (Salado) where the WIPP is located. Short and long-term seals are planned for the shafts. Short-term seals, a composite of concrete and bentonite, will primarily be located in the hard rock formations separating the water-bearing zones from the Salado Formation. These seals will limit water flow to the underlying long-term seals in the Salado. The long-term seals will consist of lengthly segments of initially unsaturated crushed salt. Creep closure of the shaft will consolidate unsaturated crushed salt, thereby reducing its permeability. However, water passing through the upper short-term seals and brine inherent to the salt host rock itself will eventually saturate the crushed salt and consolidation could be inhibited. Before saturating, portions of the crushed salt in the shafts are expected to consolidate to a permeability equivalent to the salt host rock, thereby effectively isolating the waste from the overlying water-bearing formations. A phenomenological model is developed for the coupled mechanical/hydrologic behavior of sealed WIPP shafts. The model couples creep closure of the shaft, crushed salt consolidation, and the associated reduction in permeability with Darcy's law for saturated fluid flow to predict the overall permeability of the shaft seal system with time. 17 refs., 6 figs., 1 tab.
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE; USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC04-76DP00789
- OSTI ID:
- 5429630
- Report Number(s):
- SAND-90-2826; ON: DE91017719
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS//MATHEMATICS, COMPUTING, AND INFORMATION SCIENCE
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
UNDERGROUND DISPOSAL
S CODES
SATURATION
FLOW MODELS
HYDRODYNAMIC MODEL
SHAFT EXCAVATIONS
SEALS
WIPP
STORAGE FACILITIES
ALGORITHMS
BENTONITE
BRINES
COMPUTER PROGRAM DOCUMENTATION
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
CREEP
FORECASTING
FORTRAN
PERMEABILITY
PLUGGING
PROGRAMMING
SALT DEPOSITS
SALT VAULT PROJECT
CLAYS
COMPUTER CODES
FUNCTIONAL MODELS
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS
MATHEMATICAL LOGIC
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
PARTICLE MODELS
PILOT PLANTS
PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTE FACILITIES
SIMULATION
STATISTICAL MODELS
THERMODYNAMIC MODEL
UNDERGROUND FACILITIES
US DOE
US ORGANIZATIONS
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES
052002* - Nuclear Fuels- Waste Disposal & Storage
990200 - Mathematics & Computers