Brine Availability Test in Salt (BATS) FY24 Update

Technical Report · Fri Aug 30 04:00:00 EDT 2024

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/2462942· OSTI ID:2462942

Kuhlman, Kristopher L. ^[1]; Mills, Melissa Marie ^[1]; Jayne, Richard Scott ^[1]; Matteo, Edward N. ^[1]; Herrick, Courtney G. ^[1]; Choens, Robert Charles ^[1]; Paul, Matthew J. ^[1]; Stauffer, Phiip H. ^[2]; Guiltinan, Eric ^[2]; Rahn, Thom ^[2]; Otto, Shawn ^[2]; Davis, Jon ^[2]; Eldridge, Daniel L. ^[2]; Rutqvist, Jonny ^[3]; Wu, Yuxin ^[3]; Hu, Mengsu ^[3]; Chen, Hang ^[3]; Wang, Jiannan ^[3]

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1. Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
2. Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
3. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

This report summarizes fiscal year 2024 (FY24) activities centered around a series of field tests in bedded salt at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) funded by the Office of Spent Fuel and Waste Science and Technology in the Spent Fuel and Waste Disposition (SFWD) program of the US Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE). High-level Purpose of Experiments: The Brine Availability Test in Salt (BATS) field tests are revealing both brine occurrence (i.e., where, and how much) and brine migration (i.e., how easily it moves) in the excavation damaged zone (EDZ). This understanding is foundational to develop a safety case for a future heat-generating waste repository in salt, and to starting up a generic repository program in salt to buy down risk. BATS seeks to predict how much brine can flow into both ambient and heated excavations (e.g., boreholes or rooms) in salt. This work is educating and empowering new repository scientists on two fronts: “design and execution of field tests” and “prediction and modeling of coupled processes.” DOE-NE capabilities in salt have grown and been tested through international modeling and benchmarking exercises (e.g., DECOVALEX, RANGERS, KOMPASS, and MEASURES; see Mills et al., 2024). The hands-on expertise we are building is a necessary step towards large-scale disposal demonstrations and eventual implementation.

• Research Organization: Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Nuclear Energy (NE), Office of Spent Fuel and Waste Disposition. Office of Spent Fuel and Waste Science and Technology; USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
• DOE Contract Number: NA0003525
• OSTI ID: 2462942
• Report Number(s): SAND--2024-12338R
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES