CORROSION OF COPPER IN REPOSITORY-LIKE FIELD TESTS: COMPILATION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA

摘要

In the KBS-3 concept for geological disposal of spentnuclear fuel, the fuel is encapsulated in copper canistersthat are embedded in compact bentonite clay in a deepgranitic formation. The Swedish Nuclear Fuel and WasteManagement Co. (SKB) has conducted several field testsof KBS-3 like installations in the Äspö Hard RockLaboratory, in which copper specimens have beenembedded in bentonite clay and exposed to deep groundwater for years. These tests have differed in variousaspects like temperature, exposure time, and the amountof residual O_2 from bentonite clay and air-filled gaps.This paper gives an account of what has been learnedfrom field tests performed with copper in bentonite clay(MiniCan, LOT, ABM, Prototype, and Febex). Data fromthe tests are compiled and analyzed in order to see whatconclusions that follows from such a meta-analysis. It isfurther discussed how the results correspond with thecanister corrosion model adopted in SKB’s safetyassessment SR-Site.