Project title: Impact of Coupled Gas Migration and Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical Processes on the Performance of Repositories for High Level Nuclear Waste.

Funding Agency: Nuclear Energy Program (NEUP). U.S, Department of Energy (DOE) , United States. Award DE-NE0008762.

Overview: The main goal of this project is to gain a better understanding on the possible effect of gas migration (particularly through discontinuities) on the performance and long term behavior of engineered barrier systems (EBS) envisaged for the isolation of high-level radioactive waste (HLW).

Main objectives:

• To improve current understanding on coupled multiphysics phenomena anticipated in a HLW repository to enhance THM models to assess the performance and safety functions of EBS for HLW.
• To expand the limited experimental database associated with gas flow phenomena through EBS intended for the isolation of HLW.
• To develop models to account for pre-existing and evolving discontinuities in EBS subjected to multiphysics actions.
• To train human resources in this complex and relevant subject.