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Direct Characterization of Transport Parameters in Near-Fieldand Engineered Backfill/Invert Materials

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 September 2012

J. L. Conca ,
B. A. Robinson ,
I. R. Triay  and
G. Y. Bussod
J. L. Conca
Affiliation:
UFA Ventures, Inc., 2000 Logston Blvd, Richland WA 99352 http://ufa.owt.com
B. A. Robinson
Affiliation:
Box 1663, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545
I. R. Triay
Affiliation:
Box 1663, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545
G. Y. Bussod
Affiliation:
Box 1663, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545
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Abstract

Performance assessment of a potential repository at Yucca Mountain includesflow and transport modeling of the unsaturated zone as the criticalpredictive component, and involves a series of model calculations thatprovide predictions of the migration of important radionuclides in theinventory to the water table. The modeling requires the relevant propertiesof both the natural environment and the engineered systems. The UnsaturatedFlow Apparatus, UFA, was used to directly measure the unsaturated andsaturated transport properties of whole rock tuff cores and candidatebarrier materials to provide real input parameters to the models. Theseproperties included hydraulic conductivity, matric potential, airpermeability, and diffusion coefficient, all of which are strong functionsof the volumetric water content. Results show that for all recharges above0.1 mm/yr, fractures will be partially saturated and conducting at thatrecharge rate. Whenever the thermal conditions relax enough to allowrewetting of the host rock, there will be dripping from the drift ceiling.Unsaturated transport of colloids through fractured cores of Topopah Springand Prow Pass tuffs was also investigated and found to depend primarily uponcolloid charge, and not size, for the rock cores investigated.

Information

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 465: Symposium II – Scienfific Basis for Nuclear Waste Management XX , 1996 , 951
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1997

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References

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