Keisuke Maekawa

Technical Know-How for Modeling of Geological Environment: Part 1—Overview and Groundwater Flow Modeling

It is important for site characterization projects to manage the decision-making process with transparency and traceability and to transfer the technical know-how accumulated during the research and development to the implementing phase and to future generations. The modeling for a geological environment is to be used to synthesize investigation results. Evaluation of the impact of uncertainties in the model is important to identify and prioritize key issues for further investigations. Therefore, a plan for site characterization should be made based on the results of the modeling. The aim of this study is to support for the planning of initial surface-based site characterization based on the technical know-how accumulated from the Mizunami Underground Research Laboratory Project and the Horonobe Underground Research Laboratory Project. These projects are broad scientific studies of the deep geological environment that are a basis for research and development for the geological disposal of high-level radioactive wastes. In this study, the work-flow of the groundwater flow modeling, which is one of the geological environment models, and is to be used for setting the area for the geological environment modeling and for groundwater flow characterization, and the related decision-making process using literature data have been summarized.© 2010 ASME

Development of Methodology of Groundwater Flow and Solute Transport Analysis in the Horonobe Area, Hokkaido, Japan

It is important for establishment of safety assessment techniques of geological disposal to understand groundwater flow and solute transport accurately. Therefore, we are positioning to confirm an applicability of the techniques in realistic environment as a crucial issue in R&D. We have attempted and planed some relevant studies as below: - A methodology to integrate activities from site investigations to evaluation of solute transport was examined. We have carried out groundwater flow analysis on a regional scale using geological and hydrological information from surface-based investigations at the Horonobe area, and also solute transport analysis based on the information of the trajectory analysis. - We have carried out a preliminary simulation of groundwater flow and salinity concentration distribution using information on climatic and sea-level changes, and evolution of geological structures considering the impacts of natural events and processes. Consequently, we could outline the impacts of natural events and processes on geological environment including hydrogeology, hydrochemistry and their evolutions. - We have been planning to develop and apply a methodology of groundwater flow and solute transport analysis to the shallow part, the Horonobe coastal area and around the URL. These techniques would become a basis for future site specific safety assessment in Japan.Copyright

Study on the Estimation Error Caused by Using One-Dimensional Model for the Evaluation of Dipole Tracer Test

In-situ tracer tests are a valuable approach to obtain parameters for a performance assessment of nuclear waste repository. A one-dimensional model is simple and is commonly used to identify radionuclide transport parameters by fitting breakthrough curves simulated using the model to those obtained from tracer tests. However, this method can increase uncertainty and introduce errors in the estimated parameters. In particular, such uncertainties and errors will be significant when evaluating parameters for tests conducted in a dipole (two-dimensional) flow field between injection and withdrawal wells. This paper describes a numerical analysis investigation into the effects of various experimental conditions on parameters estimated using a one-dimensional model for cases involving tracer tests in a two-dimensional fracture plane. Results show that longitudinal dispersivity tends to be overestimated by the one-dimensional model analysis. This overestimation is the result of several factors: smaller pumping rate, larger dipole ratio, stronger heterogeneity of the fracture hydraulic conductivity, and greater orthogonally-oriented background groundwater flow. Such information will help us to better plan and design tracer tests at underground research laboratories located in both Mizunami in central Japan and Horonobe in northern Japan. Understanding appropriate experimental conditions will help decrease the uncertainty in the results of tracer tests.Copyright

A Study on Groundwater Infiltration in the Horonobe Area, Northern Hokkaido, Japan

In the Horonobe area of northern Hokkaido, the Japan Atomic Energy Agency has been carrying out various hydrological observations to estimate the recharge rate. Subsurface earth temperature and soil moisture content have been observed at HGW-1 site (GL-0.7m to GL-2.3m, since 2005) and Hokushin Meteorological Station (GL-0.1m to GL-1.1m, since 2008). The results have revealed groundwater infiltration and recharge occurring throughout year, the shallow groundwater-infiltration velocity depending on the depth and the position of the Zero Flux Plane. For the estimation of boundary conditions in groundwater flow simulation, in this study, the shallow groundwater-flow system has been examined qualitatively on the basis of the variation of the subsurface earth temperature and the soil moisture content. In the future, it is necessary to quantitatively assess the shallow groundwater infiltration and recharge rate, the intermediate runoff, and the evapotranspiration based on the observed data of the weighing lysimeter, and the other measurement stations in the area.Copyright