Nevada nuclear waste storage investigations. Quarterly report, July-September 1982

Technical Report · Mon Aug 01 04:00:00 EDT 1983

OSTI ID:59061

The purpose of the DOE National Waste Terminal Storage (NWTS) Program is to safely dispose of spent reactor fuel and the high-level and transuranic wastes associated with commercial nuclear reactor fuel cycles. The Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations (NNWSI), which are a part of the NWTS program, are studiying the Nevada Test Site (NTS) area to establish whether it would qualify as a licensable location for a commercial nuclear waste repository; determining whether specific underground rock masses in the NTS area are technically acceptable for permanently disposing of highly radioactive solid wastes; and developing and demonstrating the capability to safely handle and store commercial spent reactor fuel and high-level waste. High-precision analyses of tuff samples have been carried out using neutron activation analysis. X-ray diffraction analyses of samples from the four tuffaceous horizons of interest at Yucca Mountains were completed. Hydrologic testing was conducted in Well UE25b-1 to determine the chemistry of the groundwater in Drill Hole Wash at Yucca Mountain. Laboratory single-fracture tracer experiments were performed on rocks containing both a natural and an artificial fracture. Two types of hydrothermal experiments were conducted to examine tuff mineral stability and fluid composition in equilibrium with tuff at elevated temperatures. Calculations made using current rainfall conditions showed water travel time from the surface to the water table at Yucca Mountain to exceed the 10 CFR 60 requirements. The first phase of the small-diameter heater experiments in nonwelded tuff was initiated; the preliminary findings of this experiment are different than for the experiment conducted in welded tuff. Initial mechanical testing of both jointed and intact samples of nonwelded zeolitized tuffs was completed.

• Research Organization: USDOE Nevada Operations Office, Las Vegas, NV (United States)
• OSTI ID: 59061
• Report Number(s): NVO--196-32; ON: DE83017610
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

05 NUCLEAR FUELS
58 GEOSCIENCES
ACTIVATION ANALYSIS
GROUND WATER
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
HYDROLOGY
MECHANICAL TESTS
NEUTRON REACTIONS
NEVADA TEST SITE
NONDESTRUCTIVE ANALYSIS
RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
SITE SELECTION
SPENT FUELS
TEMPERATURE EFFECTS
TUFF
UNDERGROUND DISPOSAL
X-RAY DIFFRACTION
Yucca Mountain Project