Field air injection tests to determine the effect of a heat cycle on the permeability of welded tuff

As part of a series of prototype tests conducted in preparation for site characterization at Yucca Mountain, air-injection tests were conducted in the welded tuffs in G-Tunnel at the Nevada Test Site. The objectives were to characterize the permeability of the highly fractured tuff around a horizontal heater emplacement borehole, and to determine the effect of a heating and cooling cycle on the rock-mass permeability. Air was injected into packed-off intervals along the heater borehole. The bulk permeability of the rock adjacent to the test interval was computed from the air-flow rate, temperature, and pressure at steady state. The permeability varied from a minimum of 0.08 D to a maximum of over 144 D. Higher permeabilities seemed to correlate spatially with the mapped fractures. The rock was then heated for a period of 6.5 months with an electrical-resistive heater installed in the borehole. After heating, the rock was allowed to cool down to the ambient temperature. the highest borehole wall temperature measured was 242 degrees C. Air injection tests were repeated following the heating and cooling cycle, and the results showed significant increases in bulk permeability ranging from 10 to 1830% along the borehole