Experimental and Modeling Results for Reconsolidation of Crushed Natural Rock Salt Under Varying Physical Conditions
- Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
Mined salt from the underground facility at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) Project is a candidate material for use as backfill around the waste packages and in the underground openings during and after the operational phase. We have conducted a series of hydrostatic and triaxial compression experiments on the time-dependent compaction behavior of crushed salt under nominally dry, "damp," (0.5-3 wt % added water), and brine-saturated conditions. Though the compaction of dry crushed salt is very show in the laboratory, damp salt is likely to compact as rapidly as the mine walls can converge. Drained tests on brine-saturated crushed salt indicate that, though effects associated with saturation do retard consolidation rates slightly, high fractional densities (≥ 0.95) can still be obtained on laboratory time scales at pressures below lithostatic at the WIPP. Triaxial compression experiments indicate that small deviatoric stresses have little impact on consolidation rates. Micromechanical models for the compaction of dry and damp crushed salt, based on isostatic hot-pressing models, are discussed.
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC04-76DP00789
- OSTI ID:
- 10110945
- Report Number(s):
- SAND--90-2509; CONF-910907--4; ON: DE92004952
- Resource Relation:
- 7. international congress on rock mechanics, Aachen (Germany), 16-20 Sep 1991
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Experimental and modeling results for reconsolidation of crushed natural rock salt under varying physical conditions: Applications to nuclear waste isolation in bedded and domal salt formations
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Related Subjects
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
360602
58 GEOSCIENCES
580000
ACOUSTIC EMISSION TESTING
BACKFILLING
BRINES
COMPRESSIBILITY
CREEP
EVAPORITES
FLUID MECHANICS
GEOCHEMISTRY
GEOSCIENCES
GRAIN DENSITY
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
PERMEABILITY
POROSITY
SALT DEPOSITS
SATURATION
SHEAR
STRAINS
STRESSES
STRUCTURE AND PHASE STUDIES
VOLUMETRIC ANALYSIS
WASTE DISPOSAL AND STORAGE
WIPP