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Thermal Impact on Damaged Boom Clay and Opalinus Clay: Permeameter and Isostatic Tests with μCT Scanning

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Abstract

Within the framework of the TIMODAZ project, permeameter tests and isostatic tests were performed on Boom Clay and Opalinus Clay in order to assess the impact of temperature, pore water composition, and confining stress on the sealing of damaged samples of Boom Clay and Opalinus Clay. A microfocus X-ray computed tomography technique was used to visualize the evolution of the sealing process. Compared to the fast sealing of Boom Clay, the sealing of Opalinus Clay was much slower. The heating showed a significant, favorable impact on the sealing behavior of Opalinus Clay under permeameter test conditions, while the sealing behavior of Boom Clay appeared to be unaffected. Tests performed under isostatic conditions did not reveal a significant influence of a heating–cooling cycle on the sealing behavior of these clays. The reappearance of the fractures or holes in the samples after dismantling confirms earlier observations which showed that after sealing, the original mechanical properties are not recovered. In other words, a heating cycle does not seem to induce healing.

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Acknowledgments

The TIMODAZ project was funded by the European Commission as part of the sixth EURATOM framework programme, Nuclear Fission (2006–2010). This work is performed in close cooperation with, and with the financial support of ONDRAF/NIRAS, the Belgian Agency for Radioactive Waste and Fissile Materials, as part of the programme on geological disposal of high-level/long-lived radioactive waste that is carried out by ONDRAF/NIRAS. The authors are also grateful to many valuable discussions and comments from Geert Volckaert, Xiangling Li, Lou Areias, and Maarten Van Geet, to the review and coordination at SCK by Mieke De Craen and Norbert Maes, to the technical support from Serge Labat and Louis Van Ravestyn, to the sample preparation by Jef Sannen, and to the improvement of the English writing in this paper by Rypens Jan. Last but not the least, the authors would like to thank Tim Vietor from NAGRA (National Cooperative for the Disposal of Radioactive Waste, Switzerland) for providing the OPA samples.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. European Underground Research Infrastructure for Disposal of Nuclear Waste in Clay Environment (EURIDICE), Boeretang 200, SCK·CEN, 2400, Mol, Belgium

    G. J. Chen & P. Van Marcke

  2. Belgian Nuclear Research Center (SCK·CEN), Mol, Belgium

    T. Maes, F. Vandervoort, X. Sillen & M. Honty

  3. Physics and Astronomy, Ghent University, Proeftuinstraat 86, Ghent, Belgium

    M. Dierick & P. Vanderniepen

Authors
  1. G. J. Chen
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  2. T. Maes
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  3. F. Vandervoort
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  4. X. Sillen
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  5. P. Van Marcke
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  6. M. Honty
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  7. M. Dierick
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  8. P. Vanderniepen
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to G. J. Chen.

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X. Sillen and P. Van Marcke are now at the Belgian Agency for Nuclear Waste and Fissile Materials (ONDRAF/NIRAS), Brussels, Belgium.

Appendix

Appendix

Chemical composition of the test solutions is presented in Table 4 (Honty et al. 2012).

Table 4 Chemical composition of the test solutions
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Chen, G.J., Maes, T., Vandervoort, F. et al. Thermal Impact on Damaged Boom Clay and Opalinus Clay: Permeameter and Isostatic Tests with μCT Scanning. Rock Mech Rock Eng 47, 87–99 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-012-0334-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-012-0334-y

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