Temperature response and brine availability to heated boreholes in bedded salt. Issue 1 (25th April 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Guiltinan, Eric J.; Kuhlman, Kristopher L.; Rutqvist, Jonny; Hu, Mengsu; Boukhalfa, Hakim; Mills, Melissa; Otto, Shawn; Weaver, Douglas J.; Dozier, Brian; Stauffer, Philip H.
• Is Part Of: Vadose zone journal. Volume 19:Issue 1(2020)
• Page Start: n/a
• Page End: n/a
• Publication Date: 2020-04-25
• Subjects: Soil science -- Periodicals; Zone of aeration -- Periodicals; Groundwater flow -- Periodicals; Groundwater flow; Zone of aeration; Periodicals; Electronic journals; 631.4
• DOI: 10.1002/vzj2.20019
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1539-1663

Abstract

Abstract: There is a growing need for disposal of high‐level nuclear waste. To reduce uncertainty associated with brine availability to repository excavations in salt formations, a collaboration between Sandia, Los Alamos, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories is performing a series of borehole‐scale coupled process tests. Here, we report on the first round of the Brine Availability Test in Salt (BATS) project, a "shakedown" experiment called Phase 1s. Experimental testing included placing a resistive heater, a 260‐W radiative heater, and a 750‐W radiative heater within previously drilled horizontal boreholes at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) while monitoring temperature and water inflow. The experiments successfully achieved the targeted temperature of 120 °C when using the 750‐W radiative heater. Simulations using FEHM (Finite Element Heat and Mass transfer code) and TOUGH‐FLAC (Transport Of Unsaturated Groundwater and Heat–Fast Lagrangian Analysis of Continua) were able to accurately predict the coupled thermo–hydro–mechanical–chemical response of salt, matching the observed temperature and brine production. Due to the extremely low permeability of salt, these systems take many years to reach steady state when perturbed by mining activities. Long‐term numerical simulations are used to develop the initial pressure and saturation conditions. The inclusion of a damaged rock zone with higher permeability around the borehole also affects the saturation and pressure distributions and plays an important role in dissipating the potential for thermal pressurization. Knowledge gained from this round of experimentation and simulation will be used to conduct the next BATS project experiment in new boreholes at WIPP. Core Ideas: Drift‐scale simulations can develop the unsteady initial conditions in salt. A damaged rock zone around the borehole significantly affects water inflow. Lower saturations within the damaged rock zone limit thermal pressurization. A 750‐W radiative heater can achieve the targeted borehole temperature of 120 °C.