The Effect of Different Forms of Corrosion on Copper in Disposal Conditions

To assess the corrosion resistance of the copper shield, three major corrosion types are considered in this paper, namely stress corrosion cracking, pitting corrosion and general corrosion. The approach presented in this paper is based on assessing whether the occurrence of different types of corrosion can be excluded in the disposal conditions. If this is not the case, we recommend to predict the maximum corrosion penetration on the basis of experimental results and to assess, if it is below an acceptable level. We have applied this approach to show that the occurrence of stress corrosion cracking in the presence of nitrite ions in the disposal conditions can very likely be excluded. We have also shown that assessing the occurrence of localised corrosion due to bicarbonate ions and the occurrence of general corrosion in the disposal conditions requires further experimental work