Design
- A large diameter borehole (Ø 388 mm) backfilled with OPC mortar is being used as a proxy for cementitious material used as backfill and/or support material in L/ILW or TRU waste repositories.
- In the centre of the mortar backfill, a small diameter (Ø 56 mm) borehole was drilled in November 2019 and equipped with a multi-packer system for the circulation of the test cocktail. Figure 1 shows the schematic setup in a sub-vertical borehole. The cocktail will be based on cement water and be prepared with the ions listed in Table 1.
- The circulation interval will be connected to surface equipment, allowing for continuous monitoring of the fluid composition by online sensors and sampling. The monitoring will focus on activities of the injected radionuclides, chemistry, and microbiology.
- Three monitoring boreholes drilled at relatively short distance (ca 15 cm) from the circulation borehole will allow to monitor the progress of the weakest sorbing compounds in the rock.
- Based on the results from the experiment monitoring and discussions between the partners, the in-situ experiment will be overcored to allow for the analysis of diffusion profiles in the mortar and/or in the rock.
Table 1: Isotopes (radioactive and stable) foreseen for the circulation in the CIM experiment.
Isotope | Species |
C-14 | Formate HCOO- |
I-129 | Iodide I- |
H-3 | HTO |
Cl-36 | Cl- |
Cs-134 | Cs+ |
Ba-133 | Ba2+ |
HPF backfilled borehole
Four vertical or slightly inclined boreholes resulting from the overcoring of the HPF experiment at GTS have been backfilled with OPC mortar in 2004 (Figure 2).
One of these boreholes is being used as circulation borehole for the CIM experiment. The borehole and the depth of the circulation interval was selected in order to position the latter in an area of dense matrix with no distinct water conducting features. The selection was based on available geological logs from the HPF project. Three monitoring boreholes were drilled at short distance (ca 15 cm) from the source borehole.
Figure 1: Setup of the circulation in a sub-vertical borehole
Figure 2: Schematic 3D view of the HPF and planned CIM borehole relative to the AU-126 shear zone and AU tunnel at the GTS