Grouting as a remedial technique for buried low-level radioactive wastes

Journal Article · Tue Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1985 · J. Environ. Qual.; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2134/jeq1985.00472425001400030016x· OSTI ID:5235492

Spalding, B P; Hyder, L K; Munro, I L

Seven grout formulations were tested in the laboratory for their ability to penetrate and to reduce the hydraulic conductivities of soils used as backfills for shallow land burial trenches. Soils from two sites, in Oak Ridge, TN, and Maxey Flats, KY were used and both are classified as Typic Dystrochrepts. Three soluble grout formulations (sodium silicate, polypropenamide (polyacrylamide), and 1,3-Benzenediol (resorcinol)-formaldehyde) were able to both penetrate soil and sand columns and reduce hydraulic conductivities from initial values of ca. 10/sup -4/ m s/sup -1/ to < 10/sup -8/ m s/sup -1/. Three particulate grouts (lime (calcium oxide)-fly ash, fly ash-cement-bentonite, and bentonite alone) could not penetrate columns; such formulations would, therefore, be difficult to inject into closed burial trenches. Field demonstrations with both sodium silicate and polyacrylamide showed that grout could be distributed throughout a burial trench and that waste-backfill hydraulic conductivity could be reduced several orders of magnitude. Field grouting with polyacrylamide reduced the mean hydraulic conductivity of nine intratrench monitoring wells from 10/sup -4/ to 10/sup -8/ m s/sup -1/. Grouting of low-level radioactive solid waste in situ, therefore, should be an effective technique to correct situations where leaching of buried wastes has or will result in groundwater contamination.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Lab., TN
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-26
• OSTI ID: 5235492
• Journal Information: J. Environ. Qual.; (United States), Journal Name: J. Environ. Qual.; (United States) Vol. 14:3; ISSN JEVQA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

052002* -- Nuclear Fuels-- Waste Disposal &amp; Storage
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
BENCH-SCALE EXPERIMENTS
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
DATA
DISSOLUTION
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
GROUND DISPOSAL
GROUTING
HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY
INFORMATION
LEACHING
LOW-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS
NUMERICAL DATA
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
REMEDIAL ACTION
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SOILS
SOLID WASTES
STABILIZATION
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES