Development of performance assessment methodology for nuclear waste isolation in geologic media

Conference · Tue Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1985

OSTI ID:5235416

Bonano, E J; Cranwell, R M; Davis, P A

The burial of nuclear wastes in deep geologic formations as a means for their disposal is an issue of significant technical and social impact. The analysis of the processes involved can be performed only with reliable mathematical models and computer codes as opposed to conducting experiments because the time scales associated are on the order of tens of thousands of years. These analyses are concerned primarily with the migration of radioactive contaminants from the repository to the environment accessible to humans. Modeling of this phenomenon depends on a large number of other phenomena taking place in the geologic porous and/or fractured medium. These are gound-water flow, physicochemical interactions of the contaminants with the rock, heat transfer, and mass transport. Once the radionuclides have reached the accessible environment, the pathways to humans and health effects are estimated. A performance assessment methodology for a potential high-level waste repository emplaced in a basalt formation has been developed for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The approach followed consists of a description of the overall system (waste, facility, and site), scenario selection and screening, consequence modeling (source term, ground-water flow, radionuclide transport, biosphere transport, and health effects), and uncertainty and sensitivity analysis.

• Research Organization: Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: AC04-76DP00789
• OSTI ID: 5235416
• Report Number(s): SAND-85-0456C; CONF-851232-1; ON: TI85017813
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

052002 -- Nuclear Fuels-- Waste Disposal & Storage
054000* -- Nuclear Fuels-- Health & Safety
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
BASALT
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
GROUND WATER
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
IGNEOUS ROCKS
MANAGEMENT
MASS TRANSFER
MATERIALS
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PERFORMANCE
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL
RADIOACTIVE WASTE FACILITIES
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
ROCKS
UNDERGROUND DISPOSAL
VOLCANIC ROCKS
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES
WATER