Deep Borehole Disposal of Nuclear Wastes: Opportunities and Challenges
Autor: | Byung-Gon Chae, Yongje Kim, Franklin W. Schwartz |
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Rok vydání: | 2017 |
Předmět: |
0301 basic medicine
010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences Drill Renewable Energy Sustainability and the Environment Borehole Radioactive waste Drilling Management Monitoring Policy and Law 01 natural sciences Fluid density 03 medical and health sciences 030104 developmental biology Fuel Technology Nuclear Energy and Engineering Mining engineering Environmental science National laboratory Deep borehole disposal Waste Management and Disposal 0105 earth and related environmental sciences |
Zdroj: | Journal of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT). 15:301-312 |
ISSN: | 2288-5471 1738-1894 |
DOI: | 10.7733/jnfcwt.2017.15.4.301 |
Popis: | The concept of deep borehole disposal (DBD) for high-level nuclear wastes has been around for about 40 years. Now, the Department of Energy (DOE) in the United States (U.S.) is re-examining this concept through recent studies at Sandia National Laboratory and a field test. With DBD, nuclear waste will be emplaced in boreholes at depths of 3 to 5 km in crystalline basement rocks. Thinking is that these settings will provide nearly intact rock and fluid density stratification, which together should act as a robust geologic barrier, requiring only minimal performance from the engineered components. The Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board (NWTRB) has raised concerns that the deep subsurface is more complicated, leading to science, engineering, and safety issues. However, given time and resources, DBD will evolve substantially in the ability to drill deep holes and make measurements there. A leap forward in technology for drilling could lead to other exciting geological applications. Possible innovations might include deep robotic mining, deep energy production, or crustal sequestration of CO2, and new ideas for nuclear waste disposal. Novel technologies could be explored by Korean geologists through simple proof-of-concept experiments and technology demonstrations. |
Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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