Long-term performance of spent fuel in geological repositories

The amount of spent fuel generated in Germany up to 2040 has been estimated at 8950 thm. By this time 5500 thm of vitrified high level waste will have accumulated. Both types of waste will be finally disposed of in one underground repository. Potential host rocks are rock salt, granite and mudrock. Up to now several performance assessment studies have been carried out in order to identify the main parameters governing the long-term safety of such repositories. The disposal concepts investigated differ widely in the water content of the rock formations, the engineered barrier systems and the sorption capacities of the various materials. To cite this article: W. Brewitz, U. Noseck, C. R. Physique 3 (2002) 879–889.