Author(s)

J. Pacovský & J. Šťástka

Abstract

It is envisaged that sprayed backfill technology will be used to fill the access galleries of deep geological repositories for radioactive waste produced by nuclear power plants. This technology has already been experimentally tested at several locations outside the Czech Republic. The basic sprayed material consists of bentonite, a natural ecological material which fulfils all the quality demands required in the construction of deep geological repository engineered barriers including, in particular, swelling capacity, impermeability, high plasticity and self-healing ability. It is anticipated that spraying will serve for backfilling those underground spaces inaccessible to ordinary machinery. The space filled by sprayed backfill must prevent the penetration of hazardous radionuclides to the same extent as those spaces backfilled with hand- and mechanically-compacted natural bentonite or its mixture with crushed rock. Keywords: radioactive waste, engineered barrier, sprayed backfill, shotclay, bentonite.

Keywords

radioactive waste, engineered barrier, sprayed backfill, shotclay, bentonite