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Title: On calibration of the UZ site-scale model of Yucca Mountain

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:405187
; ; ;  [1]
  1. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab., CA (United States); and others

The 3-D unsaturated-zone site-scale model (model) of Yucca Mountain, under development at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) in cooperation with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), has been calibrated against the measured data available for the site. This is an important step in the model development and verification process. The reliability and the accuracy of the model predictions of the moisture, gas, and heat flow and distributions in the mountain depend upon model parameters, imposed boundary conditions, and realistic representations of different-scaled heterogeneous geological features, among other factors. Even though considerable efforts have been made in recent years to investigate hydrologic and rock properties of the Yucca Mountain site, many of the site-specific parameters, such as fracture and fault properties and net infiltration rates, are not well-defined at present. Therefore, as part of the continuous development of the model, a comprehensive calibration study has been conducted to examine and enhance the model capability in predicting the site conditions. This paper presents some of our model calibration results, including incorporation and calibration of (1) saturation and water potential data, (2) gas pressure data, and (3) thermal data. Much more detailed information about the calibration is found in Wu et al.

Research Organization:
American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), New York, NY (United States); American Nuclear Society (ANS), La Grange Park, IL (United States)
DOE Contract Number:
AC03-76SF00098
OSTI ID:
405187
Report Number(s):
CONF-960421-; TRN: 97:000513
Resource Relation:
Conference: 7. annual international high-level radioactive waste management conference, Las Vegas, NV (United States), 29 Apr - 3 May 1996; Other Information: PBD: 1996; Related Information: Is Part Of High level radioactive waste management: Proceedings of the seventh annual international conference; PB: 519 p.
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English