Safety Assessment for Geological Disposal of Radioactive Wastes

Catalog Description

• Multi-barrier concept; groundwater hydrology, mathematical modeling of mass transport in heterogeneous media, source term for far-field model; near-field chemical environment, radionuclide release from waste solids, modeling of radionuclide transport in the near field, effect of temperature on repository performance, effect of water flow, effect of geochemical conditions, effect of engineered barrier alteration; overall performance assessment, performance index, uncertainty associated with assessment, regulation and standards.

Course Prerequisites

• NE 124 or upper division course in differential equations.

Course Objectives

• Provide students with mathematical tools for safety assessment of geological disposal of high-level radioactive waste, which is considered to be one of the most difficult technologically and controversial among all types of radioactive wastes.

Topics covered

• Multi-barrier concept
• Far-field radionuclide transport
• Near-field radionuclide transport
• Overall Performance Assessment

Class schedule

• Three hours of lecture per week