Prediction of the thermal-hydraulic-mechanical response of a geological repository at large scale and sensitivity analyses

Guo, Ruiping; Xu, Hao; Plúa, Carlos; Armand, Gilles

doi:10.1016/j.ijrmms.2020.104484

Prediction of the thermal-hydraulic-mechanical response of a geological repository at large scale and sensitivity analyses

Journal Article · Tue Nov 10 00:00:00 EST 2020 · International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2020.104484· OSTI ID:1844368

Guo, Ruiping ^[1]; Xu, Hao ^[2]; Plúa, Carlos ^[3]; Armand, Gilles ^[3]

Nuclear Waste Management Organization (Canada)
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Andra, Bure (France)

To better understand the Thermal-Hydraulic-Mechanical (THM) response of the rock caused by the high-level radioactive waste (HLW) released heat in the Callovo-Oxfordian formation (COx) in the near-field and far-field areas, a series of coupled THM modelling is performed. This study presents a case study based on the French geological repository for HLW (Cigéo project) to better assess modelling of deep geological repositories (DGR) within the DECOVALEX-2019 framework. In this study, the proposed coupled THM model, implemented in the platform of COMSOL, is validated by comparing the modelled THM results for a point heat source in an infinite rock mass with an analytical solution. It is also validated by comparing its thermal component for the Base Case with accurate results calculated using another numerical method. To shorten the calculation time, the DGR is modelled using six cuboid blocks representing 162 HLW cells and only six central HLW cells of interest modelled in detail. This simplification is validated. This model can easily be used to model not only the near-field THM response of the rock but also the far-field THM response. The influence of the boundary conditions applied on the gallery wall, HLW cell walls, and external surfaces of the model and the influence of different vertical dimensions of the geometry are studied. The sensitivity analyses of the THM parameters of COx on the THM response at different locations are performed. Finally, the influence of using a 2-dimensional (2D) model to represent a 3-dimensional (3D) repository is also investigated.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-05CH11231

OSTI ID:: 1844368

Journal Information:: International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, Journal Name: International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences Vol. 136; ISSN 1365-1609

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

References (20)

Green's functions for a fully coupled thermoporoelastic material Smith, David W.; Booker, John R. International Journal for Numerical and Analytical Methods in Geomechanics, Vol. 17, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1002/nag.1610170302	journal	March 1993
Geometry and Properties of the Excavation-Induced Fractures at the Meuse/Haute-Marne URL Drifts Armand, G.; Leveau, F.; Nussbaum, C. Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering, Vol. 47, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-012-0339-6	journal	January 2013
Discrete element modelling of conceptual deep geological repository for high-level nuclear waste disposal Verma, A. K.; Gautam, P.; Singh, T. N. Arabian Journal of Geosciences, Vol. 8, Issue 10 https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-014-1762-7	journal	January 2015
Fundamental aspects of the hydromechanical behaviour of Callovo-Oxfordian claystone: From experimental studies to model calibration and validation Armand, Gilles; Conil, Nathalie; Talandier, Jean Computers and Geotechnics, Vol. 85 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compgeo.2016.06.003	journal	May 2017
Thermohydromechanical modelling of the buffer/container experiment Guo, Ruiping Engineering Geology, Vol. 122, Issue 3-4 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enggeo.2011.07.005	journal	October 2011
Transformation plasticity and the effect of temperature on the mechanical behaviour of Hawkesbury sandstone at atmospheric pressure P. G., Ranjith; Viete, Daniel R.; Chen, Bai Jie Engineering Geology, Vol. 151 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enggeo.2012.09.007	journal	November 2012
Thermal response of a Canadian conceptual deep geological repository in crystalline rock and a method to correct the influence of the near-field adiabatic boundary condition Guo, Ruiping Engineering Geology, Vol. 218 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enggeo.2016.12.014	journal	February 2017
Modelling the FEBEX THM experiment using a state surface approach Nguyen, T. S.; Selvadurai, A. P. S.; Armand, G. International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, Vol. 42, Issue 5-6 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2005.03.005	journal	July 2005
Coupled thermal–hydrological–mechanical analyses of the Yucca Mountain Drift Scale Test—Comparison of field measurements to predictions of four different numerical models Rutqvist, J.; Barr, D.; Datta, R. International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, Vol. 42, Issue 5-6 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2005.03.008	journal	July 2005
25 years of DECOVALEX - Scientific advances and lessons learned from an international research collaboration in coupled subsurface processes Birkholzer, Jens T.; Tsang, Chin-Fu; Bond, Alexander E. International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, Vol. 122 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2019.03.015	journal	October 2019
Calibration of the thermo-hydro-mechanical parameters of the Callovo-Oxfordian claystone and the modelling of the ALC experiment Guo, Ruiping; Thatcher, K. E.; Seyedi, D. M. International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, Vol. 132 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2020.104351	journal	August 2020
Pore pressure response to disposal of heat generating radioactive waste in a low permeability host rock Thatcher, Kate E.; Bond, Alexander E.; Norris, Simon International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, Vol. 135 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2020.104456	journal	November 2020
Influence of the interval length of hydraulic packer systems on thermally-induced pore pressure measurements in rock Guo, Ruiping International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, Vol. 135 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2020.104500	journal	November 2020
Short- and long-term behaviors of drifts in the Callovo-Oxfordian claystone at the Meuse/Haute-Marne Underground Research Laboratory Armand, G.; Noiret, A.; Zghondi, J. Journal of Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, Vol. 5, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrmge.2013.05.005	journal	June 2013
Main outcomes from in situ thermo-hydro-mechanical experiments programme to demonstrate feasibility of radioactive high-level waste disposal in the Callovo-Oxfordian claystone Armand, G.; Bumbieler, F.; Conil, N. Journal of Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, Vol. 9, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrmge.2017.03.004	journal	June 2017
Modeling of thermal pressurization in tight claystone using sequential THM coupling: Benchmarking and validation against in-situ heating experiments in COx claystone Xu, Hao; Rutqvist, Jonny; Plúa, Carlos Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology, Vol. 103 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tust.2020.103428	journal	September 2020
The Viscosity of Liquids Andrade, E. N. Da C. Nature, Vol. 125, Issue 3148 https://doi.org/10.1038/125309b0	journal	March 1930
Thermohydromechanical Modeling of a Full-Scale Tunnel Sealing Clay Bulkhead Guo, R.; Dixon, D.; Martino, J. Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, Vol. 132, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)1090-0241(2006)132:1(12)	journal	January 2006
Two large-scale sealing tests conducted at Atomic Energy of Canada's underground research laboratory: the buffer-container experiment and the isothermal test Dixon, D.; Chandler, N.; Graham, J. Canadian Geotechnical Journal, Vol. 39, Issue 3 https://doi.org/10.1139/t02-012	journal	June 2002
Short-term thermal modelling of a conceptual deep geological repository in Canada Abootalebi, Pedram; Siemens, Greg Environmental Geotechnics, Vol. 7, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1680/jenge.18.00027	journal	February 2020

Similar Records

Investigation of Coupled Processes in Argillite Rock: FY18 Progress

Technical Report · Fri Jun 22 00:00:00 EDT 2018 · OSTI ID:1462005

Modeling of thermal pressurization in tight claystone using sequential THM coupling: Benchmarking and validation against in-situ heating experiments in COx claystone

Journal Article · Mon Aug 31 20:00:00 EDT 2020 · Tunnelling and Underground Space Technology · OSTI ID:1756366

Related Subjects

58 GEOSCIENCES
Coupled thermal-hydraulic-mechanical modelling
Deep geological repository
Nuclear waste management programs
Thermal-hydraulic-mechanical response
Used nuclear fuel

Prediction of the thermal-hydraulic-mechanical response of a geological repository at large scale and sensitivity analyses

Citation Formats

References (20)

Similar Records

Related Subjects