Natural isotope tracing of hydric transfers in a very low porosity clay-stone formation: the argilites of Tournemire (France)

Since 1988, the experimental site of the French Institute for Protection and Nuclear Safety (IPSN) situated in a tunnel near Toumemire (Aveyron, France), is studied in order to develop techniques and methods for the characterization of water behaviour in a clay-stone formation with very low water content and very low permeability. Isotope geochemistry was used to define the fluid transfer modalities. After the development or the improvement of sampling techniques, the measurement of the stable isotope contents (oxygen-18, deuterium, carbon-13) and radioactive isotope contents (tritium, carbon-14, chlorine-36) of fluids (pore water, fracture water) and solids (calcite fracture fillings) allowed to distinguish several origins and behaviours of water in the massif. The stable isotope distribution of pore water could be due to a diffusion driven mixing between argilite formation water and water from karsts, over and underlying the argilite formation. In this hypothesis, the time needed to establish the distribution profile should be longer than 5 million years. The role of the fractures seems complex, with indications of local paleo-transfers from the matrix to the fracture, and indications of transfers from the karstic aquifer. (author)