Deep Geological Repository Thermal Sandbox
Interactive KBS-3 repository design tool. Add/delete canisters, scale via rulers, adjust rock conductivity and decay heat, and analyze thermal plume interference.
Add Canister Mode: Click along the transport gallery drift (-450m level) to drill a vertical deposition hole and place a KBS-3 canister.
Calculating DGR Heat Transport...
Note: Standard KBS-3 canister spacing is 9.0 meters center-to-center along deposition drifts.
KBS-3 Multi-Barrier Safety Concept & 5-Canister Thermal Study
The KBS-3 spent nuclear fuel disposal method (developed by SKB, Sweden and implemented at Posiva's ONKALO repository, Finland) relies on a passive, multi-barrier containment system designed for long-term isolation (>100,000 years):
- Engineered Copper-Cast Iron Canister: Cast-iron insert provides structural mechanical strength against glacial loads, surrounded by a corrosion-resistant copper outer shell (50 mm thick). Canister diameter is 1.05 m and height is 4.83 m.
- Compacted Bentonite Buffer: Highly compacted sodium bentonite clay blocks line each 1.75 m diameter vertical deposition hole (7.83 m depth). Bentonite swells upon water contact, providing low hydraulic conductivity and self-healing properties.
- Crystalline Rock Matrix: Low-permeability granitic host bedrock at depths of 400 to 500 m provides a stable hydrogeological environment. Canisters are spaced 9.0 m apart along drifts.
Thermal Engineering Constraint: Radioactive decay heat conducts through the buffer into the rock matrix. To prevent mineralogical transformation of montmorillonite in the bentonite buffer, the peak temperature at the canister-buffer interface must remain strictly below 95 °C.