The Institute of Resource Ecology (IRE) is one of the eight institutes of the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden – Rossendorf (HZDR). The research activities are mainly integrated into the program “Nuclear Waste Management, Safety and Radiation Research (NUSAFE)” of the Helmholtz Association (HGF) and focused on the topics “Safety of Nuclear Waste Disposal” and “Safety Research for Nuclear Reactors”...

The Institute of Resource Ecology (IRE) is one of the eight institutes of the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden – Rossendorf (HZDR). The research activities are mainly integrated into the program “Nuclear Waste Management, Safety and Radiation Research (NUSAFE)” of the Helmholtz Association (HGF) and focused on the topics “Safety of Nuclear Waste Disposal” and “Safety Research for Nuclear Reactors”...

Reflection seismic and seismic tomography methods can be used to image the upper kilometer of hard bedrock and the loose unconsolidated sediments covering it. Developments of these two methods and their application, as well as identifying issues concerning their usage, are the main focus of the thesis. Data used for this development were acquired at three different sites in Sweden, in Forsmark 140 km north of Stockholm, in the Oskarshamn area in southern Sweden, and in the northern part of the Siljan Ring impact crater area. The reflection seismic data were acquired with long source-receiver offsets relative to some of the targeted depths to be imaged. In the initial processing standard steps were applied, but the uppermost part of the sections were not always clear. The longer offsets imply that pre-stack migration is necessary in order to image the uppermost bedrock as clearly as possible. Careful choice of filters and velocity functions improve the pre-stack migrated image, allowing better correlation with near-surface geological information. The seismic tomography method has been enhanced to calculate, simultaneously with the velocity inversion, optimal corrections to the picked first break travel times in order to compensate for the delays due to the seismic waves passing through the loose sediments covering the bedrock. The reflection seismic processing used in this thesis has produced high-quality images of the upper kilometers, and in one example from the Forsmark site, the image of the uppermost 250 meters of the bedrock has been improved. The three-dimensional orientation of reflections has been determined at the Oskarshamn site. Correlation with borehole data shows that many of these reflections originate from fracture zones. The developed seismic tomography method produces high-detail velocity models for the site in the Siljan impact area and for the Forsmark site. In Forsmark, detailed estimates of the bedrock topography were calculated with the use of the developed tomography method.

Radioactive waste repositories, designed in accordance with the current UK concept, would be required to provide containment for thousands of years beneath hundreds of metres of rock. The physical processes, both geological and other processes, that might lead to migration of radionuclides are slow in comparison to human timescales — it is impractical to make an experiment of the whole system and so these systems are typically investigated through the use of numerical models. Predictive models are based on combinations of: assumptions, mathematical formulations and parameter values derived from experimental observations. The Ventilation Experiment in the Opalinus Clay at Mont Terri, Switzerland, was designed to involve geological and other physical processes that would be active during the excavation and construction phases of a repository, and with consequences for the repository performance during the operational phase. The experiment consisted of a 10m long tunnel of 1:3m diameter through which air of known relative humidity was circulated in order to force drying and re-saturation through the tunnel wall. Two such cycles over four years have been observed via installed instrumentation. Several numerical models have been constructed of the ventilation experiment by different international teams under the decovalex project using different approaches for cross-validation. Through participation in this project, a 1D model using Richards’ Equation was developed that effectively reproduces the hydrodynamic, mechanical and conservative mass transport results. During the course of developing that model, many other domains, meshes, formulations and software versions were investigated. Now that the field scale Ventilation Experiment can be reproduced with numerical models, the findings (assumptions, formulations, parameter values, computational methods and software) would be transferable to other argillaceous formations to enable predictive modelling of similar scenarios and contribute to the safe disposal of nuclear waste and other problems involving similar geological processes. Work of this type fills the gap between laboratory scale experiments and regional scale modelling of geological systems. The gap is especially wide for low-permeability formations because the size and time-scale limitations effect the ability to make direct observations and measurements. Two particular problems were also addressed in this work: that of the use relative permeability functions and also the computational treatment of the physical interface between the tunnel domain and the rock domain. A sensitive component in many models of unsaturated flow through porous media and covering a wide variety of applications, including reservoir engineering, is the representation of permeability at an unsaturated point (kx) as a scaling of the saturated permeability (ksat) by introducing some function of the pressure head, or saturation as the relative permeability (krel) in the relation kx = ksatkrel. The choice of the particular function and its parameter values adds little to our understanding of the physical parameters. A solution is proposed to the second problem, of how to computationally represent, implement and manage the interface between two physical (i.e. spatial) domains. The scheme maps every part of the boundary of one domain onto the corresponding part of the boundary of the other domain, storing the state variables in shared memory and converting between physical components.

This report integrates and summarizes findings from the 1987 and 1988 Native American cultural resource studies related to the Yucca Mountain high level radioactive waste isolation facility. The purposes of the report are to describe the traditional cultural values associated with the Cultural Studies Area, describe the methods used in the research, and provide a theoretical discussion of the role of cultural resources in American Indian groups' past and contemporary society (DOE 1988:3 -9). Findings from these Native American cultural resource studies are presented in what are termed "interim reports." Each of these were submitted for concurrent review by the sixteen involved American Indian tribes, Science Applications International Corporation, and the Department of Energy. This report is based on five reports, including three interim reports.

This report presents Native American interpretations of and concerns for plant resources on or near Yucca Mountain, Nevada. This is one of three research reports regarding Native American cultural resources that may be affected by site characterization activities related to the Yucca Mountain high -level radioactive waste disposal facility. Representatives of the sixteen involved American Indian tribes identified and interpreted plant resources as part of a consultation relationship between themselves and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). This report integrates data from the ethnobotanical fieldwork and visits conducted over a three -week period. The bulk of this report divides plants into their logical components: plant parts used; places where used; purposes of uses; and persons who used, do use, and will use the plants. The remainder of this Introduction is devoted to conveying an American Indian holistic perspective on plants as a part of the world.

This report presents a review of the literature concerning Native American occupancy and use of the Yucca Mountain area and vicinity. It draws on a wide range of material, including early traveler reports, government documents, ethnographic and historical works, and local newspapers. The report complements two other concurrent studies, one focused on the cultural resources of Native American people in the study area and the other an ethnobotanical study of plant resources used by Native American people in the study area. Both concurrent studies are based on interviews with Native American people. The literature review was designed to contribute to the understanding of the presence of Native American people in the Yucca Mountain area. A review of the existing literature about the Yucca Mountain area and southern Nye County, supplemented by the broader literature about the Great Basin, has verified three aspects of the study design. First, the review has aided in assessing the completeness of the list of Native American ethnic groups that have traditional or historical ties to the site. Second, it has aided in the production of a chronology of Native American activities that occurred on or near the site during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Third, it has helped to identify the location of cultural resources, including burials and other archaeological sites, in the study area and vicinity.

The Yucca Mountain region was used by Owens Valley Paiute, Western Shoshone, and Southern Paiute people for thousands of years. The area contains numerous plants, animals, and sacred resources traditionally used by these people. This report presents the location and interpretation of Native American cultural resources on or near Yucca Mountain, Nevada. This work built upon the archaeological reconnaissance and identifications of cultural resources by the Desert Research Institute. Interpretations provided by Native American Indian people are not intended to refute other scientific studies, such as botanical, wildlife, and archaeological studies. Rather, they provide additional hypotheses for future studies, and they provide a more complete cultural understanding of the Yucca Mountain area. Representatives of sixteen American Indian tribes identified the cultural value of these resources as part of a consultation relationship with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). This interim report is to be used to review research procedures and findings regarding (1) initial consultation with the sixteen tribes, (2) in -depth interviews with tribal elders, and (3) findings from the first on -site visit with representatives of the sixteen tribes.

This is a report of cultural resource identifications, evaluations, and potential impact assessments made by the American Indian Rapid Cultural Assessment team (RCA) who represent the Consolidated Group of Tribes and Organizations (CGTO). The RCA team is composed of the American Indian Writers Subgroup (AIWS) who were selected by the CGTO to participate in the development of the Nevada Test Site Environmental Impact Statement (NTS EIS). The study was part of the on-going consultation program established between the Department of Energy, Nevada Operations Office (DOE/NV) and the 17 American Indian tribes and 3 Indian organizations who have traditional and historic ties to DOE/NV managed lands. This study responded to two DOE/NV American Indian consultation activities (1) the recent site-wide environmental impact statement for the NTS and (2) Presidential Executive Order #13007 regarding American Indian sacred sites protection. The study was an outgrowth of the on-going DOE/NV American Indian Consultation Program. The RCA team was asked to visit three different study locales (1) Double Tracks; (2) Clean Slates 1, 2, and 3; and (3) Central Nevada Test Area. The first study locale is on the Nellis Air Force Range (NAFR), the second place located on the TTR, and the third locale involves small sections of land surrounded by Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service lands in Hot Creek Valley. At each location the DOE/NV conducted some type of testing activity, which resulted in either radioactivity or hazardous wastes becoming part of the site. The DOE/NV Environmental Restoration Division then conducted actions that resulted in the removal or isolation of wastes from these past activities.

Neste trabalho, vidros contendo um resíduo industrial denominado lama vermelha, foram desenvolvidos e caracterizados. Foi utilizada a quantidade mínima de 60% em massa de lama vermelha na produção dos vidros para promover a utilização desse resíduo. De acordo com os resultados de difração de raios X obtidos, observa-se que é possível produzir materiais a partir da lama vermelha com fases amorfas consideráveis, embora fases cristalinas referentes ao Fe originário do resíduo estejam presentes. O material denominado 60L40S, o qual possui 60% em massa de lama vermelha na sua composição nominal, apresentou as melhores propriedades dentre as composições estudadas, porém apresentou também alta temperatura de fusão. Ajustes na composição desse material foram realizados buscando diminuir essa temperatura. Os resultados mostram que os ajustes foram satisfatórios no desempenho de diminuir a temperatura de fusão, porém perdas na propriedade química desse material foram observadas. Elementos comumente encontrados na composição química de rejeitos nucleares foram adicionados aos vidros produzidos neste trabalho visando estudar os efeitos dessa adição nas propriedades químicas e térmicas desses materiais. Foi observado que é possível adicionar até 15% em massa de elementos simuladores aos materiais produzidos e essa adição promove a diminuição da temperatura de fusão. Acima de 15% em massa os elementos adicionados se precipitam na estrutura do material. Foi observado que, embora haja perdas na durabilidade química do material 60L40S após a adição dos elementos simuladores, esse material, quando em contato com água, mantém os elementos simuladores confinados em sua estrutura. Esse resultado é promissor, pois sugere que o material 60L40S é capaz de imobilizar em sua estrutura elementos provenientes de rejeitos nucleares. / Glasses based on red mud, a residual material from bauxite processing, were developed and characterized in this work. In order to promote its use, a minimum 60 wt% of red mud was used in the production of the glasses. According to XRD results, materials containing considerable amorphous phases were produced when using red mud as raw material. These amorphous phases were observed even though crystalline phases associated to Fe coming from the red mud itself were present. The material denominated 60L40S, which has a nominal composition of 60 wt% red mud showed the best properties comparing with the others compositions studied. However, these materials presented a high melting temperature. Changes in the composition of this material were made with the objective of lowering this temperature. Results indicated that the changes made to the material were successful in the reduction of the melting temperature. However, a reduction in the chemical properties of the resulting material was observed. Elements usually found in the chemical composition of nuclear wastes were added to the glasses produced. It was done with the objective of determining the effect of these elements on the chemical and physical properties of the red mud based glasses obtained. It was found that it was possible to add up to 15 wt% of these elements to the materials produced. The addition of these simulants materials promoted a reduction in the melting temperature of the resulting material. Above 15 wt%, the added elements precipitate in the structure of the resulting material. Even though the reduction in the chemical durability of the 60L40S material when simulant elements were added, it was observed that this material contained the simulant elements confined in its structure when in contact with water. This is a promising result, since it indicates that the 60L40S has the potential to immobilize elements from nuclear wastes.