Sensitivity Studies of Thermal and Mechanical Parameters of Basalt

Abstract

An investigation was conducted to determine the relative importance of uncertainties in material properties of basalt beneath the Hanford Site in Washington State. This was done as part of a feasibility study of long-term high-level waste storage at the Hanford Site. The finite element technique was used to perform temperature and thermal stress analyses on various configurations of waste emplacement boreholes. The results of these analyses indicated a peak temperature at a prototypical borehole- borehole interface at approximately eight years following emplacement. No significant effect on temperature distributions due to thermal property variations was noted.