Development and utilization of a two-dimensional model of transient fluid flow in a generic repository (OGRE)

An existing time-dependent numerical model (OGRE) has been modified to examine the time frames associated with repressuring the formation rocks surrounding a generic nuclear waste repository following the operational period when wastes are being stored. The model is two-dimensional in the vertical plane, and assumes that the entire regime is saturated, but the repository is at one atmosphere during the operational period. For the physical and geometric parameters assumed, the results of a simulation of the time necessary to repressurize the formation after the operational period was 421.5 years. These results were in close agreement with a steady-state calculation performed by Golder Associates, Inc., in 1977. The fact that the time-dependent model results were close to the steady-state calculation resulted from the use (in the model) of a very small compressibility value, which caused the simulation to reach a steady-state condition in a relatively short time. Based on these studies, the magnitude of the system (water plus matrix) compressibility is of great importance in determining whether the time for repressurization can be determined from analytical methods or requires the use of a time-dependent numerical model