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Natural Clay Soils as Materials for Creating Engineering Safety Barriers for Radioacive Waste Disposal

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Abstract

Two natural clay soils are considered as promising materials for creating safety barriers for radioactive waste disposal. Composition indicators that affect the absorbing properties of clays have been analyzed. The absorption capacity of the soils is studied in column experiments with respect to Cs, Sr, U, Th, Ba (analogue of Ra), and Nd and Dy (analogues of Am-241 and Cm-244), which can be present in radioactive waste of hazard classes III and IV. The experimentally derived migration parameters (effective porosity, effective dispersion coefficient, and sorption capacity) of soils are used in predictive mathematical modeling for the comparative assessment of the effectiveness of safety barriers made of the materials under study; the possibility of using them for engineering safety barriers is estimated.

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Funding

The work was supported by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation (theme no. 5-7, Citis no. AAAA-A16-116033010108-8).

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Correspondence to M. L. Kuleshova, T. G. Shimko, N. N. Danchenko, I. V. Avilina or N. Yu. Stepanova.

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Translated by O. Ponomareva

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Kuleshova, M.L., Shimko, T.G., Danchenko, N.N. et al. Natural Clay Soils as Materials for Creating Engineering Safety Barriers for Radioacive Waste Disposal. Moscow Univ. Geol. Bull. 78, 697–705 (2023). https://doi.org/10.3103/S014587522305006X

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.3103/S014587522305006X

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