| EPSRC Reference: |
EP/X011615/1 |
| Title: |
Clay Hydration, Drying, and Cracking in Nuclear Waste Repositories |
| Principal Investigator: |
Harrington, Dr J |
| Other Investigators: |
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| Researcher Co-Investigators: |
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| Project Partners: |
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| Department: |
Minerals & Waste |
| Organisation: |
British Geological Survey |
| Scheme: |
Standard Research - NR1 |
| Starts: |
03 April 2023 |
Ends: |
02 April 2026 |
Value (£): |
329,561
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| EPSRC Research Topic Classifications: |
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| Related Grants: |
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| Panel History: |
| Panel Date | Panel Name | Outcome |
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20 Oct 2022
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NEUP Phase 6
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Announced
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Summary on Grant Application Form |
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The design of geologic repositories for high-level waste (HLW) and spent nuclear fuel (SNF) remains an incompletely resolved question in the nuclear fuel cycle despite significant advances over the last several decades. A key theme in current designs is the multibarrier concept, whereby several layers of barrier materials, from canisters to EBS to low-permeability host rock, ensure the isolation of the waste. An important role is played by the Engineered Barrier System (EBS), which must maintain adequate sealing capacity (i.e., low hydraulic permeability, mechanical integrity) around the waste canisters for durations of thousands of years while exposed to (i) large thermal gradients caused by heat released by the waste; (ii) large geochemical gradients due to corrosion and ion-exchange reactions at the canister-EBS and EBS-host rock interfaces; and (iii) large geomechanical gradients driven by capillary stresses associated with the initial EBS rehydration, water evaporation and, later, with the possible generation of gases at the canister-EBS interface through corrosion and hydrolysis reactions. The objective of this project is to develop a new multi-scale simulation approach to predict the coupled thermal-hydrologic-mechanical-chemical (THMC) evolution of an engineered clay barrier in the near field of a geological repository for HLW and SNF.
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Key Findings |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Potential use in non-academic contexts |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Impacts |
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| Description |
This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk |
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Sectors submitted by the Researcher |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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