Coupled solution of heat and moisture flow in unsaturated clay barriers in a repository geometry

Abstract

AbstractAn analytical solution in the Laplace transform domain is obtained for the transient heat and moisture transport in an unsaturated clay buffer with a geometry simulating repository conditions. A numerical inversion scheme based on Crump's method is used to obtain the time‐domain solution. The coupled effect of thermally driven moisture transport is especially investigated because of its importance to alter the flow field in low‐permeability buffers. The practical background is based on the case of an engineering bentonite barrier placed in a drift excavated in rock in the context of underground disposal of high‐level radioactive waste. Parametric study has been performed to assess the effects of dimensionless geometry and material parameters on flow field. Despite the simplified assumptions required in order to obtain analytical expressions, the results incorporate the main mechanisms involved in the coupled thermo‐hydraulic (T–H) problem, and they may be eventually used for validation purposes. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.