Radioactive waste storage in mined caverns in crystalline rock: results of field investigations at Stripa, Sweden
It is generally agreed that the most practicable method of isolating nuclear wastes from the biosphere is by deep burial in suitable geologic formations. Such burial achieves a high degree of physical isolation but raises questions concerning the rate at which some of these wastes may return to the biosphere through transport by groundwater. Any suitable repository site will be disturbed first by excavation and second by the thermal pulse caused by the radioactive decay of the wastes. To assess the effectiveness of geologic isolation it is necessary to develop the capability of predicting the response of a rock mass to such a thermal pulse. Ultimately, this requires field measurements below the surface in media representative of those likely to be encountered at an actual repository. Access to a granitic rock mass adjacent to a defunct iron ore mine at Stripa, Sweden, at a depth of about 350 m below surface has provided a unique opportunity to conduct a comprehensive suite of hydrological and thermo-mechanical experiments under such conditions. The results of these field tests have shown the importance of geologic structure and the functional dependence of the thermo-mechanical properties on temperature in developing a valid predictive model. The results have also demonstrated the vital importance of carrying out large-scale investigations in a field test facility.
- Research Organization:
- California Univ., Berkeley (USA). Lawrence Berkeley Lab.
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 6775925
- Report Number(s):
- LBL-11651; CONF-8010132-1; TRN: 81-000813
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 75th anniversary of the Illinois State Geological Survey symposium, Urbana, IL, USA, 9 Oct 1980
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
GEOLOGIC STORAGE OF RADIOACTIVE WASTE: RESULTS OF FIELD INVESTIGATIONS AT STRIPA, SWEDEN
Calculated thermally induced displacements and stresses for heater experiments at Stripa, Sweden. Linear thermoelastic models using constant material properties
Related Subjects
58 GEOSCIENCES
GRANITES
ROCK MECHANICS
RADIOACTIVE WASTE DISPOSAL
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
FIELD TESTS
FRACTURES
HYDROLOGY
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
ROCK CAVERNS
SWEDEN
TEMPERATURE EFFECTS
UNDERGROUND DISPOSAL
CAVITIES
EUROPE
FAILURES
IGNEOUS ROCKS
MANAGEMENT
MECHANICS
PLUTONIC ROCKS
ROCKS
SCANDINAVIA
TESTING
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WESTERN EUROPE
052002* - Nuclear Fuels- Waste Disposal & Storage
580300 - Mineralogy
Petrology
& Rock Mechanics- (-1989)