Nuclear waste repository parameters

Abstract The bentonite layer, which surrounds the canisters in a nuclear waste repository deep down in rock, experiences an initial drying and a resaturation from the outer rock side. These complex processes interact and a key question is the degree of initial drying and the time it takes to resaturate the bentonite. It is shown that the highly non-linear coupled equations may, when formulated in a special way, be linearized with a loss of accuracy of some 10% only. The paper presents an analytical solution for the linearized case. The solution involves two key parameters only, a time scale and thermodiffusive parameter a. The largest drying at the canister wall and the resaturation are obtained from a single set of curves with a dimensionless time and a as parameter. 

Based on the experience from the WIPP repository, the critical parameters that govern public and stakeholder interactions in the nuclear waste debate can be identified as follows ... 

In this chapter, the point defect model (PDM), describing the formation and breakdown of passive films, is reviewed and developed. It is shown how important model parameters can be extracted from experimental impedance data and used to calculate the steady-state barrier layer thickness and passive current density as a function of voltage. In particular, the model is used to define the mechanism of the formation of CU2S on Cu in sulfide-containing brine. The present studies were conducted to provide a scientific basis for estimating the lifetimes of copper canisters in crystalline rock repositories in Sweden for the disposal of high level nuclear waste (HLNW). 

Sensitivity analysis of geological parameters having impact on nuclear waste deep geological repository safety... 

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