Simulation of dilatancy-controlled gas migration processes in saturated bentonite using a coupled multiphase flow and elastoplastic H2 M model

Dilatancy-controlled gas flow in preferential pathways plays a key role in the safety analysis of radioactive waste repositories.This is particularly the case for bentonite,an often-preferred barrier material.Gas flow in preferential pathways is characterized by localization and spontaneous behavior,which is challenging to simulate in numerical models due to strong hydro-mechanical coupling.To analyze a laboratory experiment in the framework of the DECOVALEX-2023 project,this study introduced a new approach of combining continuous modelling methods with spatial material properties derived from material heterogeneities and experimental observations.The proposed model utilized hydro-mechanical spatial distributions,namely Young’s modulus and gas entry pressure,and elastoplasticity combined with a linear swelling model.A conceptual strain-dependent permeability approach simulated dilatancycontrolled gas flow based on hydro-mechanical coupling.To test the effectiveness of the presented approach,a gas injection test in a compacted,saturated bentonite sample was simulated using the opensource code OpenGeoSys 5.8 and compared with experimental observations.The presented methodology is capable of simulating localized gas flow in preferential pathways.The spatial distributions of Young’s modulus and gas entry pressure affect the swelling pressure,relative permeability and,in combination with the strain-dependent permeability model,also the intrinsic permeability.

面向成本的中深层地热储群井采灌优化布局研究

回灌是水热型地热资源开发的必由之路。但是,回灌冷水可能会引起热突破,致使开采井水温降低,热田寿命缩短。为此,需要对热田区开采井与回灌井进行合理布局,以实现地热资源可持续开发利用。本文基于地热系统数值模拟平台(OpenGeoSys),采用面向成本的地热田采灌井布局优化方法,充分考虑热田地热地质特征、水文地质特征以及生产的实际需求,输出给定采灌情景下的热储温度与压力的变化,并利用成本核算模型,综合考虑热储压力和温度变化所产生的附加成本,以成本最低为优化目标,给出最优采灌模式。本文以牛驼镇地热田为例,对比了雄县地区群井开采背景下,对井采灌与集中采灌的经济成本。结果表明,对井采灌模式下,热田中心热储压力下降较小,但温度下降较大;集中采灌模式下,热田中心热储压力下降相对较大,而温度下降相对较小。对其进行成本核算表明,在50年的开发寿命以内,采用对井采灌模式产生的成本为1.4×10~8元,采用集中采灌模式则为6×10~7元,优于对井采灌模式。本文所采用的优化算法,适用性广,有助于地热田的可持续开发利用。

Numerical analysis of thermal impact on hydro-mechanical properties of clay

As is known, high-level radioactive waste （HLW） is commonly heat-emitting. Heat output from HLWwilldissipate through the surrounding rocks and induce complex thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemical（THMC） processes. In highly consolidated clayey rocks, thermal effects are particularly significantbecause of their very low permeability and water-saturated state. Thermal impact on the integrity of thegeological barriers is of most importance with regard to the long-term safety of repositories. This studyfocuses on numerical analysis of thermal effects on hydro-mechanical properties of clayey rock using acoupled thermo-mechanical multiphase flow （TH2M） model which is implemented in the finite elementprogramme OpenGeoSys （OGS）. The material properties of the numerical model are characterised by atransversal isotropic elastic model based on Hooke＇s law, a non-isothermal multiphase flow model basedon van Genuchten function and Darcy＇s law, and a transversal isotropic heat transport model based onFourier＇s law. In the numerical approaches, special attention has been paid to the thermal expansion ofthree different phases： gas, fluid and solid, which could induce changes in pore pressure and porosity.Furthermore, the strong swelling and shrinkage behaviours of clayey material are also considered in thepresent model. The model has been applied to simulate a laboratory heating experiment on claystone.The numerical model gives a satisfactory representation of the observed material behaviour in thelaboratory experiment. The comparison of the calculated results with the laboratory findings verifies thatthe simulation with the present numerical model could provide a deeper understanding of the observedeffects. 2014 Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Production and hosting byElsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Environmental Information Systems:Paving the Path for Digitally Facilitated Water Management(Water 4.0)

1.Introduction The availability of reliable information describing our natural and anthropogenic environment—and its changes in particular—is crucial for understanding the complexity of structures and processes within environmental systems.Modern remote sensing and monitoring methods provide an increasing amount of environmental data that can be used for a variety of management purposes[1,2].

A water quality model applied for the rivers into the Qinhuangdao coastal water in the Bohai Sea, China

The water quality of all rivers into the Qinhuangdao coastal water was below the grade V in 2013. In this study, an inte- grated MIKE 1 l water quality model is applied to deal with the water environment in the rivers into the Qinhuangdao coastal water. The model is first calibrated with the field measured chemical oxygen demand （COD） concentrations. Then the transport of the COD in the rivers into the Qinhuangdao coastal water is computed based on the model in the water environmental monitoring process. Numerical results show that the COD concentration decreases dramatically in the estuaries, from which we can determine the positions of long-term monitoring stations to monitor the river pollutions into the coastal water. Furthermore, different scenarios about the inputs of the point sources and the non-point sources are simulated to discuss the model application in the water enviro- nmental control, and simplified formula are derived for assessing the water quality and the environmental management of rivers.

Virtual geographic environments for water pollution control

Due to extensive water pollution in Chinese rivers and lakes,large efforts have to be made to improve the quality of drinking water and manage the sewage water treatment process.We propose a general workflow for integrating a large number of heterogeneous data sets relating to various hydrological compartments into a Virtual Geographic Environment(VGE).This allows both researchers and stakeholders to easily access complex data collections in a unified context,find interrelations or inconsistencies between data sets and evaluate simulation results with respect to other observations or simulations in the same region.A prototype of such a VGE has been set up for the region around Chao Lake,containing more than 20 spatial data sets and collections as well as first simulation result.The prototype has been successfully presented to researchers and stakeholders from China and Germany.

Geographic information science in the era of geospatial big data: A cyberspace perspective

The advent of information and communication technology and the Internet of Things have led our society toward a digital era.The proliferation of personal computers,smartphones,intelligent autonomous sensors,and pervasive network interactions with individuals have gradually shifted human activities from offline to online and from in person to virtual.This transformation has brought a series of challenges in a variety of fields,such as the dilemma of placelessness,some aspects of timelessness(no time relevance),and the changing relevance of distance in the field of geographic information science(GIScience).In the last two decades,“cyber thinking”in GIScience has received significant attention from different perspectives.For instance,human activities in“cyberspace”need to be reconsidered when coupled with the geographic space to observe the first law of geography.