A comparative study on heterogeneity of clay rocks using pore-scale
diffusion simulations and experiments
Abstract
Accurate modeling and simulation of radionuclide migration in clay rocks
such as the Opalinus Clay play a key role in the safety assessment of
deep geological repositories for nuclear wastes. At the continuum scale,
the representative elementary volume (REV) is a fundamental constraint
to quantify the effective diffusivity, which is a key parameter in
reactive transport (RT) models. Therefore, an accurate estimation of the
REV is essential for a meaningful continuum-scale RT simulation in
heterogeneous clay rocks. This study presents a comprehensive analysis
of the heterogeneities of porosity and effective diffusivity in clay
rocks by using the classical sampling theory and pore-scale simulations.
First, in this study, the two-dimensional representative elementary area
(REA) is correlated with the REV for porosity via a characteristic
length. Next, it is shown that the REV for diffusivity is larger than
the REV for porosity. Moreover, these two REVs can be correlated using
Archie’s law. In such a way, the REV for diffusivity can be determined
by the developed correlations through analyzing two-dimensional
microstructures, thus significantly reducing the computational cost.
Finally, the applicability of our approach for clay rocks is validated
by experimental data on the diffusion of tritiated water in the
heterogeneous sandy facies of Opalinus Clay. From both the experimental
data and the modeling prediction, the REV for diffusivity in the sandy
facies of Opalinus Clay is in the order of cubic centimeters. This study
provides critical insights into the diffusion in heterogeneous clay
rocks towards an enhanced predictability of radionuclide migration.