Thermal calculations for the design, construction, operation, and evaluation of the Spent Fuel Test - Climax, Nevada Test Site

The Spent Fuel Test-Climax (SFT-C) is a test of retrievable deep geologic storage of commercially generated spent nuclear reactor fuel in granitic rock. Eleven spent fuel assemblies, together with six electrical simulators and 20 guard heaters, are emplaced 420 m below the surface in the Climax granite at the US Department of Energy Nevada Test Site. On June 2, 1978 LLNL secured funding for the SFT-C, and completed spent fuel emplacement May 28, 1980. This report documents a series of thermal calculations that were performed in support of the SFT-C. Early calculations employed analytical solutions to address such design and construction issues as drift layout and emplacement hole spacings. Operational aspects of the test required more detailed numerical solutions dealing with ventilation and guard-heater power levels. The final set of calculations presented here provides temperature histories throughout the test facility for evaluation of the response of the SFT-C and for comparison of calculations with acquired data. This final set of calculations employs the as-built test geometry and best-available material properties