Reaction of Topopah Spring tuff with J-13 water at 150{sup 0}C: samples from drill cores USW G-1, USW GU-3, USW G-4, and UE-25h No. 1
Samples of Topopah Spring tuff selected from vertical drill holes USW G-1, GU-3, and G-4, and from the horizontal air-drilled hole at Fran Ridge were reacted with J-13 water at 150{sup 0}C. The primary purpose of these experiments was to compare the resulting solution chemistries to estimate the degree of homogeneity that might be expected in thermally affected ground water in a potential nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain. The second purpose was to relate data obtained from welded devitrified Topopah Spring tuff collected from the potential repository depth to that previously obtained using outcrop samples. The results show very similar aqueous phase chemistries for all samples after reaction for times up to 70 days. The largest difference in final solution concentrations was for silica in one of the samples from Fran Ridge. All vertical drill core samples gave results for silica that were in agreement to within +-6 ppM and indicated solubility controlled by cristobalite. The results for reaction at 150{sup 0}C are in agreement with those obtained in previous experiments using surface outcrop samples from Fran Ridge. The major difference between the drill core results and the outcrop samples is found in the data for room-temperature rinse solutions. The outcrop samples show relatively large amounts of soluble salts that can be easily removed at room temperature. The data for room-temperature rinsing of drill core samples show no significant quantities of readily soluble salts. This result is particularly significant for the samples from the air-drilled hole at Fran Ridge, since drilling fluid that might have removed soluble salts was not used in the portion of the hole from which the samples were obtained. This result strongly suggests that the presence of soluble salts is a surface evaporation phenomenon, and that such materials are unlikely to be present at the depth of the repository.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 59914
- Report Number(s):
- UCRL-53629; ON: DE86013160
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: 3 Mar 1985
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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