The HADES (High-level rAdiowaste Disposal Evaluation Simulator) was developed by the Nuclear Fuel Cycle & Nonproliferation (NFC) laboratory at Seoul National University (SNU), based on the MOOSE Framework developed by the Idaho National Laboratory (INL). As an application of the MOOSE Framework, the HADES incorporates not only basic MOOSE functions, such as multi-physics analysis using Finite Element Method (FEM) and various solvers, but also additional functions for estimating the performance assessment of Deep Geological Repositories (DGR). However, since the MOOSE Framework does not have complex mesh generation and data analyzing capabilities, the HADES has been developed to incorporate these missing functions. In this study, although the Gmsh, finite element mesh generation software, and Paraview, finite element analysis software, were used, other applications can be utilized as well. The objectives of HADES are as follows: (i) assessment of the performance of a Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF) disposal system concerning Thermal-Hydraulic-Mechanical-Chemical (THMC) aspects; (ii) Evaluation of the integrity of the Engineered Barrier System (EBS) of both general and high-efficiency design perspective; (iii) Collaboration with other researchers to evaluate the disposal system using an open-source approach. To achieve these objectives, performance assessments of the various disposal systems and BMTs (BenchMark Test), conducted as part of the DECOVALEX projects, were studied regarding TH behavior. Additionally, integrity assessments of various DGR systems based on thermal criteria were carried out. According to the results, HADES showed very reasonable results, such as evolutions and distributions of temperature and degree of saturation, when compared to validated code such as TOUGH-FLAC, ROCMAS, and OGS (OpenGeoSys). The calculated data are within the range of estimated results from existed code. Furthermore, the first version of the code, which can estimate the TH behavior, has been prepared to share the contents using Git software, a free and open-source distribution system.

For the performance analysis of deep geological repository systems, numerical simulation with multi-physics is required, which specifically covers Thermal (T), Hydraulic (H), and Mechanical (M) behaviors in the disposal environment. Numerous simulation models have been developed so far, each of which varies in the approach and methodology for solving THM problems. Fully-coupled THM simulation codes such as ROCMAS, THAMES, and CODE_BRIGHT were mainly developed in the initial stage of DEvelopment of COupled models and their VALidation against EXperiments (DECOVALEX), with the advantage of thorough calculations consisting of correlated several variables on different physics. Due to the difficulty of solving the complex Jacobian Matrix and the following burden for the computational calculation, weakly-coupled THM models have been suggested in recent researches: TOUGH2-MP with FLAC3D, TOUGH2 with UDEC and OpenGeoSys with FLAC3D. This methodology of loose coupling allows the practical use of computational code optimized for each physics, thereby increasing the efficiency in simulation. However, these suggested models require two different numerical codes to calculate THM behaviors, which leads to several inherent issues: compatibility during maintenance, updating and dependency between two codes. In this study, therefore, the authors build a unified code for simulating THM behaviors in the deep geological repository. The concept involves the iterative sequential coupling between TH and M for calculation efficiency. As having developed the simulation code, High-level rAdiowaste Disposal Evaluation System (HADES), to describe TH behavior based on Multi-physics Object-Oriented Simulation Environment (MOOSE) software, the authors make a milestone to develop and couple the MOOSE-based new code for M behavior as Sub-app, with the previous HADES set to be Main-app. New model for M behavior will be verified with the benchmark case of DECOVALEX-THMC Task D, comparing the mechanical simulation results: stress evolution over time, profiles of stress and vertical displacement. The existing simulation results from HADES will also be updated with the coupled calculations, with regard to temperature and saturation. Additionally, the effective stress evolution can be assessed in terms of repository’s stability with Spalling Strength and Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion. This concept for new simulation model has its meaning in that it aims to demonstrate the specific methodology of loosely coupling multi-physics in unified simulation code and analyze THM complex interactions with considering mutual influence on various physics. It is expected that HADES can be renewed as an integral simulation model for deep geological repository systems by possessing the capacity for analyzing and assessing mechanical behavior.

Chemical environments of near-field (Engineered barrier and surrounded host rock) can influence performance of a deep geological repository. The chemical environments of near-field change as time evolves eventually reaching a steady state. During the construction of a deep geological repository, O2 will be introduced to the deep geological repository. The O2 can cause corrosion of Cu canisters, and it is important predicting remaining O2 concentration in the near-field. The remaining O2 concentration in the near field can be governed by the following two reactions: oxidation of Cu(I) from oxidation of Cu and oxidation of pyrite in bentonite and backfill materials. These oxidation reactions (Cu(I) and pyrite oxidation) can influence the performance of the deep geological repository in two ways; the first way is consuming oxidizing agents (O2) and the second way is the changing pH in the near-field and ultimately influencing on the mass transport rate of radionuclides from spent nuclear fuel (failure of canisters) to out of the engineered barrier. Hence, it is very important to know the evolution of chemical environments of near-field by the oxidation of pyrite and Cu. However, the oxidation kinetics of pyrite and Cu are different in the order of 1E7 which means the overall kinetics cannot be fully considered in the deep geological repository. Therefore, it is important to develop a simplified Cu and pyrite oxidation kinetics model based on deep geological repository conditions. Herein, eight oxidation reactions for the chemical species Cu(I) were considered to extract a simplified kinetic equation. Also, a simplified kinetics equation was used for pyrite oxidation. For future analysis, simplified chemical reactions should be combined with a Multiphysics Cu corrosion model to predict the overall lifetime of Cu canisters.

Since 1992, various numerical codes, such as TOUGH-FLAC and ROCMAS, have been developed and validated to dispose of Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF) safely through a series of DEvelopment of COupled models and their VALidation against EXperiments (DECOVALEX) projects. These codes have been developed using different approaches, such as general two-phase flow and Richards’ flow which is an approximated approach neglecting gas pressure change, to implement the same multiphysics behaviors. However, the quantitative analysis for numerical results, which originated from different fundamental approaches, has not been conducted accurately. As a result, improper utilization of the approach to analyze certain conditions occurring such as dramatic gas pressure change may result in erroneous outcomes and systemic problem pertaining to TH analysis. In this study, the quantitative analysis of the two approaches, in terms of TH behavior, was conducted by comparing them with a 1D simulation of the CTF1 experiment carried out by laboratory experiment. The results calculated by different approaches show agreement in terms of TH behaviors and material properties change until 120°C. The results verify the applicability of Richards’ flow approach in a high temperature environment above the current thermal criteria, set as 100°C, and gas pressure change does not have a significant impact until 120°C. Therefore, although further studies for applicability of Richards’ flow are needed to suggest the appropriate temperature range, these quantitative analyses may contribute to the performance assessment of a compact repository using the high-temperature bentonite concept, which is currently gaining attention.

Sulfide concentrations critically affect worker safety and the integrities of underground facilities, such as deep geological repositories for spent nuclear fuel. Sulfide is highly sensitive to oxygen, which can oxidize sulfide to sulfate. This can hinder precise measurement of the sulfide concentration. Hence, a literature review was conducted, which revealed that two methods are commonly used: the methylene blue and sulfide ion-selective electrode (ISE) methods. Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) was used for comparison with the two methods. The sulfide ISE method was found to be superior as it yielded results with a higher degree of accuracy and involved fewer procedures for quantification of the sulfide concentration in solution. ICP-OES results can be distorted significantly when sulfide is present in solution owing to the formation of H2S gas in the ICP-OES nebulizer. Therefore, the ICP-OES must be used with caution when quantifying underground water to prevent any distortion in the measured results. The results also suggest important measures to avoid problems when using ICP-OES for site selection. Furthermore, the sulfide ISE method is useful in determining sulfide concentrations in the field to predict the lifetime of disposal canisters of spent nuclear fuel in deep geological repositories and other industries.

Cutting reactor pressure vessels (RPV) into acceptable sizes for waste disposal is a key process in dismantling nuclear power plants. In the case of Kori-1, a remote oxyfuel cutting method has been developed by Doosan Heavy Industry & Construction to dismantle RPVs. Cutting radioactive material, such as RPV, generates a large number of fine and ultrafine particles incorporating radioactive isotopes. To minimize radiological exposure of dismantling workers and workplace surface contamination, understanding the characteristics of radioactive aerosols from the cutting process is crucial. However, there is a paucity of knowledge of the by-products of the cutting process. To overcome the limitations, a mock-up RPV cutting experiment was designed and established to investigate the characteristics of fine and ultrafine particles from the remote cutting process of the RPV at the Nuclear Decommissioning Center of Doosan Heavy Industry & Construction. The aerosol measurement system was composed of a cutting system, purification system, sampling system, and measurement device. The cutting system has a shielding tent and oxyfuel cutting torch and remote cutting robot arm. It was designed to prevent fine particle leakage. The shielding tent acts as a cutting chamber and is connected to the purification system. The purification system operates a pressure difference by generating an airflow which delivers aerosols from the cutting system to the purification system. The sampling system was installed at the center of the pipe which connects the shielding tent and purification system and was carefully designed to achieve isokinetic sampling for unbiased sampling. Sampled aerosols were delivered to the measurement device. A high-resolution electrical low-pressure impactor (HR-ELPI+, Dekati) is used to measure the size distribution of inhalable aerosols (Aerodynamic diameter: 6 nm to 10 μm) and to collect size classified aerosols. In this work, the mock-up reactor vessel was cut 3 times to measure the number distribution of fine and ultrafine particles and mass distribution of iron, chromium, nickel, and manganese. The number distribution of aerosols showed the bi-modal distribution; two peaks were positioned at 0.01−0.02 μm and 0.04–0.07 μm respectively. The mass distribution of metal elements showed bi-modal and trimodal distribution. Such results could be criteria for filter selection to be used in the filtration system for the cutting process and fundamental data for internal dose assessment for accidents. Future work includes the investigations relationships between the characteristics of the generated aerosols and physicochemical properties of metal elements.

To dispose of spent nuclear fuel, the most promising method is disposal in a deep geological repository with a multi-barrier system. Among the multi-barrier system, canisters are used to contain the spent nuclear fuel. A role of the canister is to withstand corrosion load from the deep geological environment as possible as long. Corrosion processes consist of corroding agents transport to the canister surface and electrochemical reactions between the corroding agents and the canister surface. According to previous King’s electrochemical experiments, the mass-transport rate of corroding agents is slower than the electrochemical reaction rate with copper when the canister is surrounded by dense bentonite blocks. Therefore, the mass-transport rate is a rate-determining step for the whole corrosion process. Despite of the importance of transportation of oxidizing agents in bentonite, the transportation process was not paid attention. For example, existing models which are called continuum models assumed that the corroding agents pass through the pore in the porous medium because the continuum model does not consider the fracture networks in the bentonite. Here we develop a dualpermeability and dual-porosity model. In this model, the transport of corroding agents is considered that they pass through fracture within the porous medium. The difference between the dual-permeability and dual-porosity model is whether the corroding agents can pass through the pore. The dual-permeability model assumed that the mass-transport occurs within both fracture and porous medium. On the other hand, the dual-porosity model assumed that the mass-transport occurs only within fractures. Through both models, we found that the transport rate in the fractures is much higher than through the pores, and the canister lifetime at a point where contacting the fracture tip is much shorter than other parts when the canister lifetime is calculated by the transport-governed condition. In addition, the temperature distributions in the fracture are different compared to the existing continuum model. Our results show the effect of fractures in terms of not only corroding agents transport but also the canister lifetime. We anticipate our model to be a first step for the corrosion estimation model coupled with fracture networks.

Corrosion of copper (Cu) canisters is one of the important factors to ensure the safety of a deep geological repository site. This is because the corrosion of a canister may induce failure of the canister which can lead to a release of radionuclides into the environment. Corrosion of canisters for highlevel wastes is affected by the following multiphysics: thermal-hydraulics, transportation of chemical species, chemical reactions, and interface reactions. This research aimed to develop a multiphysics numerical model for the corrosion of spent nuclear fuel canisters for a deep geological repository in South Korea. The multiphysics model is based on MOOSE (Multiphysics Object-Oriented Simulation Environment) which uses a finite element method. In the multiphysics model, the following multiphysics are coupled and solved together for a deep geological repository design of South Korea: interface redox reactions, porous flow, and heat transport in porous flow. The proposed model was validated with experimental data before being applied to a KAERI reference disposal unit. It was found that the corrosion potential of a Cu canister shows an uneven distribution of corrosion potential along with the surface. In addition, top, bottom, and side surfaces of the canisters show a different lifetime and corrosion potential. Important redox reactions for corrosion are changed along with time from a reduction of O2 and anodic dissolution of Cu by Cl− to sulfidation of Cu and reduction of water. The proposed model will be coupled with some important chemical reactions in engineering buffers and will be the base for the understanding of the behavior of Cu canisters in the KAERI reference disposal unit.

The oriental plum (Prunus salicina) is one of the most popular fruits in Korea due to its sweet taste and pleasant aroma. The objective of this study was to analyze the quality characteristics and antioxidant activities of a puree made using plums stored at low-temperatures. The quality characteristics were determined by estimating total soluble solids (TSS, °Brix), titratable acidity (TA, % citric acid), TSS/TA ratio, pH, colors, sugar content, and sensory profiles. The antioxidant effects were estimated by total polyphenol and flavonoid content and radical scavenging activity. The results showed that the plum puree containing both the flesh and the peel had markedly higher red coloration (a* value) than the puree without the peel, while yellow coloration (b* value) and lightness (L* value) were lower in the puree without the peel than with the peel. The sensory qualities including the plum taste and flavor, texture as well as overall acceptance showed no significant variation between the samples. Meanwhile, the total polyphenol/flavonoid content and radical scavenging activities were significantly improved by the presence of fruit peel and by frozen storage. These findings suggest that frozen plums could be a suitable ingredient for making a puree and concentrate for the food manufacturing industry.