Geotechnical studies relevant to the containment of underground nuclear explosions at the Nevada Test Site
The Department of Energy and the Department of Defense are actively pursuing a program of nuclear weapons testing by underground explosions at the Nevada Test Site (NTS). Over the past 11 years, scores of tests have been conducted and the safety record is very good. In the short run, emphasis is put on preventing the release of radioactive materials into the atmosphere. In the long run, the subsidence and collapse of the ground above the nuclear cavities also are matters of interest. Currently, estimation of containment is based mostly on empiricism derived from extensive experience and on a combination of physical/mechanical testing and numerical modeling. When measured directly, the mechanical material properties are obtained from short-term laboratory tests on small, conventional samples. This practice does not determine the large effects of scale and time on measured stiffnesses and strengths of geological materials. Because of the limited data base of properties and in situ conditions, the input to otherwise fairly sophisticated computer programs is subject to several simplifying assumptions; some of them can have a nonconservative impact on the calculated results. As for the long-term, subsidence and collapse phenomena simply have not been studied to any significant degree. This report examines the geomechanical aspects of procedures currently used to estimate containment of undergroung explosions at NTS. Based on this examination, it is concluded that state-of-the-art geological engineering practice in the areas of field testing, large scale laboratory measurements, and numerical modeling can be drawn upon to complement the current approach.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-48
- OSTI ID:
- 5182223
- Report Number(s):
- UCRL-53267; ON: DE82015657; TRN: 82-016403
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: Portions of document are illegible
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
58 GEOSCIENCES
ROCK MECHANICS
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
UNDERGROUND EXPLOSIONS
CONTAINMENT
GROUND MOTION
GROUND SUBSIDENCE
NEVADA TEST SITE
NUCLEAR EXPLOSIONS
STRESSES
VOLCANIC ROCKS
EXPLOSIONS
IGNEOUS ROCKS
MECHANICS
MOTION
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
ROCKS
US DOE
US ORGANIZATIONS
450202* - Explosions & Explosives- Nuclear- Weaponry- (-1989)
580300 - Mineralogy
Petrology
& Rock Mechanics- (-1989)