Soil moisture monitoring results at the radioactive waste management complex of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, FY-1993

Technical Report · Mon Nov 01 04:00:00 EST 1993

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/10146029· OSTI ID:10146029

McElroy, D L

In FY-1993, two tasks were performed for the Radioactive Waste Management Complex (RWMC) Low Level Waste Performance Assessment to estimate net infiltration from rain and snow at the Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA) and provide soil moisture data for hydrologic model calibration. The first task was to calibrate the neutron probe to convert neutron count data to soil moisture contents. A calibration equation was developed and applied to four years of neutron probe monitoring data (November 1986 to November 1990) at W02 and W06 to provide soil moisture estimates for that period. The second task was to monitor the soils at two neutron probe access tubes (W02 and W06) located in the SDA of the RWMC with a neutron probe to estimate soil moisture contents. FY-1993 monitoring indicated net infiltration varied widely across the SDA. Less than 1.2 in. of water drained into the underlying basalts near W02 in 1993. In contrast, an estimated 10.9 in. of water moved through the surficial sediments and into the underlying basalts at neutron probe access tube W06. Net infiltration estimates from the November 1986 to November 1990 neutron probe monitoring data are critical to predictive contaminant transport modeling and should be calculated and compared to the FY-1993 net infiltration estimates. In addition, plans are underway to expand the current neutron probe monitoring system in the SDA to address the variability in net infiltration across the SDA.

• Research Organization: EG and G Idaho, Inc., Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: AC07-76ID01570
• OSTI ID: 10146029
• Report Number(s): EGG-WM--11066; ON: DE94010795
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

052002
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
540230
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
FLOW MODELS
FLUID FLOW
HYDRODYNAMICS
LOW-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
MOISTURE
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS MONITORING AND TRANSPORT
RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT
RAIN
SNOW
SOILS
UNDERGROUND STORAGE
WASTE DISPOSAL AND STORAGE