1. Alternative Buffer Material Project meeting #2 2006-11-30

2. Agenda 09:00Welcome and introduction Project status. Anders Eng, Acuo Engineering 09:45Block Manufacturing. Ulf Nilsson, Clay Technology 10:15 Coffee 10:30Bentonite characteristics Dietrich Koch, IKO Minerals 11:15Experiment site visit 12:00Lunch 13:00Storage (parameters, amount etc) Anders Eng 13:15Future work, analyses Daniel Svensson, SKB - 15:00Discussions

3. Talk points Project outlines Installation Current status Future work

4. Talk points Project outlines Installation Current status Future work

5. Project goals Verify laboratory results with in situ studies, emphasis on temperature, scale and geochemical conditions. Discover possible problems with block manufacturing and handling Give further data for verification of thermo-hydro-mechanical (THM) and geochemical models.

6. International participation Participating organizations: SKB Andra BGR GRS JAEA Nagra Posiva RAWRA University of Bern

7. Experiment design Experiment design based on LOT experiment with some modifications: Several materials Less instrumentation Shorter deposit holes Complete package length heated Steel pipes No inserts or tracers 123 4 m Short time (1-2 years). Heated from start. Artificial saturation from start. Medium time (2-4 years). Heating starts when buffer is saturated. Artificial saturation from start. Long time (  5 years). Heated from start. No artificial saturation.

8. Materials Block material: Ikosorb Deponit CA-N Ibeco Seal M-90 Friedland Asha 505 Calcigel Febex Kunigel V1 Callovo Oxfordian (both discs and remoulded) Rokle Mx-80 Granulates: MX-80 MX-80 with quartz Total of 14 variations of 11 materials !

9. Talk points Project outlines Installation Current status Future work

10. Experiment site

11. Package design Package parts: Steel pipe Buffer blocks Saturation system Instrumentation Heater system ”Backfill”

12. Steel pipes ”Black” steel. Bottom plate welded to pipe. Welds are pressure leak tested. Corrosion prevention at top and bottom.

13. Buffer blocks Roughly 100 blocks manufactured Block dimensions: –10 cm high –Dy = 29 cm –Di = 11 cm Pressure about 100 MPa. Density about 2 g/cm 3 10-12 kg each.

14. Granulate cage Problem: Keep granulates in place during installation. Used tools / materials should not interfere with experiment. Solution: Steel granulate container. Frame will take force from blocks above. Same material as heater pipe. GeoTextile keep granulates in place and allows water passage. Open at top and bottom for interaction with surrounding blocks.

15. Granulate cage

17. Saturation system System properties: Four perforated titanium pipes in each package Pipes connected in pair at package bottom – flushing possible. 0,1 m between perforation in package 1. 1 m between perforations in package 2 & 3. Pipes protected by “plastic textile” – prevent holes from clogging with sand.

18. Sensors Monitoring temperature and humidity: Thermocouples –20 per package Temperature indicators, –2 between each block. Relative humidity sensors –4 in package number 2.

19. Sensors

20. Putting the pieces together

21. Talk points Project outlines Installation Current status Future work

22. Current status Project status as of today: All three packages assembled and installed in deposit holes. Monitoring system completed. Remaining buffer blocks are in storage. Remaining work Final assembly of saturation system Heater installation System startup

23. Talk points Project outlines Installation Current status Future work

24. Storage Reference blocks is presently stored on Äspö. Temperature above 0°C. Temperature variations with season. Blocks wrapped in plastic bags and put in boxes. Other parameters to consider? Test program – Daniel Svensson is responsible for planning from SKB side.