Fluid Transport Driven by Heat-Generating Nuclear Waste in Bedded Salt

The question of where to safely dispose high-level nuclear waste (HLW) provides ample motivation for scientific research on deep geologic disposal options. The goal of this study is to model the dominant heat and mass transport processes that would be driven by heat generating nuclear waste buried in bedded salt. The interaction between liquid brine flow towards the heat source, establishment of a heat pipe in the mine-run salt backfill, boiling, and vapor condensation leads to changes in porosity, permeability, saturation, thermal conductivity, and rheology of the salt surrounding potential waste canisters. The Finite Element Heat and Mass transfer code (FEHM) was used to simulate these highly coupled thermal, hydrological, and chemical processes. The numerical model has been tested against recent and historical experimental data to develop and improve the salt material model. We used the validated numerical model to make predictions of temperature gradients, porosity changes, and tracer behavior that will be testable in a future 2-year field-scale heater experiment to be carried out in an experimental test bed at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) site near Carlsbad, NM.