Expected thermal and hydrothermal environments for waste emplacement holes based on G-tunnel heater experiments
Volcanic tuffs on and adjacent to the Nevada Test Site (NTS) are being considered by the Department of Energy (DOE) for the possible geologic disposal of high-level radioactive wastes. The Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations (NNWSI) project was established in 1977 to evaluate such disposal. Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), one of the participants in the NNWSI project, has as one of its responsibilities the development of a rock mechanics program for the Nevada site. SNL conducted three small-diameter heater experiments in welded and nonwelded tuffs in G-Tunnel on the NTS, to investigate the thermal (heat transfer) and hydrothermal (thermal-induced water migration) behaviour as part of the rock mechanics program. These two aspects were investigated to increase knowledge about the behaviour of tuff so that predictive capabilities are available for use by repository designers, waste-package designers, and performance analysts. Also, knowledge of the behaviour of the tuff is invaluable for planning and designing future in situ experiments at Yucca Mountain, the candidate site for the repository. The evaluations of these three experiments is the subject of this paper.
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Labs., P.O. Box 5800, Albuquerque, NM 87185
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC04-76DP00789
- OSTI ID:
- 59947
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-860609--; ISBN 0-87335-059-6
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
58 GEOSCIENCES
COORDINATED RESEARCH PROGRAMS
EVALUATION
HEAT TRANSFER
HEATERS
HEATING
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
NEVADA TEST SITE
PLANNING
RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL
RADIOACTIVE WASTE FACILITIES
ROCK MECHANICS
SANDIA LABORATORIES
SITE SELECTION
TEMPERATURE EFFECTS
TUFF
TUNNELS
UNDERGROUND DISPOSAL
US DOE
Yucca Mountain Project