Sorption and diffusion of cobalt, nickel, strontium, iodine, cesium and americium in natural fissure surfaces and drill core cups studied by autoradiography, 2

Theoretical studies on geological disposal of radioactive waste in fractured crystalline rock and migration of radionuclides in groundwater circulating through the fractured zones have indicated the importance of diffusion into the rock matrix. Samples chosen for this study were filled and unfilled natural fracture surfaces and drill cores having a central drilled cavity ('drill core cups'). Samples originated from the two nuclear power plant sites in Finland: mica gneiss and tonalite from Olkiluoto and rapakivi granite from Haestholmen in Loviisa. An autoradiographic method was used for determination of the penetration depths and calculation of diffusion coefficients of Cs-134, Sr-90, Co-60, Ni-63, I-125 and Am-241. Emphasis was also directed to testing the quantitative autoradiographic method for diffusion coefficient measurements. After one year's contact time the penetration depths of strontium in tonalite were 15 mm and 10 mm for the filled and unfilled natural fracture surface samples and 5 mm for drill core cups. In the filled natural fracture surface sample of rapakivi granite the penetration depth of strontium was 35 mm. For cesium penetration depths in tonalite from 2.0 mm (unfilled natural surface) to 3.0 mm (drill core cup) were observed. For cobalt a penetration depth of 0.9 mm was found in the drill core cup sample of tonalite after contact time of one year and 1.5 mm in the filled natural fracture surface of rapakivi granite after contact time of six months. The range of Da-values of strontium was 1.4 x 10-14 - 1.1 x 10-13 m2/s. The Da-values for cesium and cobalt in tonalite (drill core cup samples) were 7 x 10-15 m2/s and 5 x 10-16 m2/s, respectively