Radionuclide transport as vapor through unsaturated fractured rock. [Contains glossary]

Technical Report · Wed Jul 01 04:00:00 EDT 1987

OSTI ID:6215481

Green, R T; Evans, D D

Transport mechanisms potentially important at larger distances include ordinary diffusion, viscous flow, and free convection. Ordinary diffusion includes self and binary diffusion, Knudsen flow, and surface diffusion. Pressure flow and slip flow comprise viscous flow. Free convective flow results from a gas density contrast. Transport mechanisms or processes dominant near the repository include ordinary diffusion, viscous flow plus several mechanisms whose driving forces arise from the non-isothermal, radioactive nature of high-level waste. The additional mechanisms include forced diffusion, aerosol transport, thermal diffusion and thermophoresis. Near a repository, vapor transport mechanisms and processes can provide a significant means of transport from a failed canister to the geologic medium from which other processes can transport radionuclides to the accessible environment. These issues are believed to be important factors that must be addressed in the assessment of specific engineering designs and site selection of any proposed high-level waste repository. 95 refs., 43 figs., 10 tabs.

• Research Organization: Arizona Univ., Tucson (USA). Dept. of Hydrology and Water Resources; Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC (USA). Div. of Engineering
• OSTI ID: 6215481
• Report Number(s): NUREG/CR-4654; ON: DE87900916
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CARBON 14
CARBON ISOTOPES
CASKS
CONTAINERS
DIFFUSION
DRYING
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
EVEN-ODD NUCLEI
FAILURES
FLUIDS
GASES
HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE WASTES
HOURS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
HYDROGEN ISOTOPES
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
INTERNAL CONVERSION RADIOISOTOPES
IODINE 129
IODINE ISOTOPES
ISOMERIC TRANSITION ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
KRYPTON 85
KRYPTON ISOTOPES
LIGHT NUCLEI
MANAGEMENT
MASS TRANSFER
MATERIALS
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
PERMEABILITY
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL
RADIOACTIVE WASTE FACILITIES
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
RADIOISOTOPES
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
ROCKS
SITE SELECTION
TRITIUM
VAPORS
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTES
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES