The Beishan underground research laboratory for geological disposal of high-level radioactive waste in China:Planning, site selection,site characterization and in situ tests

With the rapid development of nuclear power in China, the disposal of high-level radioactive waste（HLW） has become an important issue for nuclear safety and environmental protection. Deep geological disposal is internationally accepted as a feasible and safe way to dispose of HLW, and underground research laboratories（URLs） play an important and multi-faceted role in the development of HLW repositories. This paper introduces the overall planning and the latest progress for China＇s URL. On the basis of the proposed strategy to build an area-specific URL in combination with a comprehensive evaluation of the site selection results obtained during the last 33 years, the Xinchang site in the Beishan area,located in Gansu Province of northwestern China, has been selected as the final site for China＇s first URL built in granite. In the process of characterizing the Xinchang URL site, a series of investigations,including borehole drilling,geological mapping, geophysical surveying,hydraulic testing and in situ stress measurements, has been conducted. The investigation results indicate that the geological,hydrogeological, engineering geological and geochemical conditions of the Xinchang site are very suitable for URL construction. Meanwhile, to validate and develop construction technologies for the Beishan URL, the Beishan exploration tunnel（BET）, which is a 50-m-deep facility in the Jiujing sub-area, has been constructed and several in situ tests, such as drill-and-blast tests, characterization of the excavation damaged zone（EDZ）, and long-term deformation monitoring of surrounding rocks, have been performed in the BET. The methodologies and technologies established in the BET will serve for URL construction.According to the achievements of the characterization of the URL site, a preliminary design of the URL with a maximum depth of 560 m is proposed and necessary in situ tests in the URL are planned.

On area-specific underground research laboratory for geological disposal of high-level radioactive waste in China

Underground research laboratories （URLs）, including ＂generic URLs＂ and ＂site-specific URLs＂, are un- derground facilities in which characterisation, testing, technology development, and/or demonstration activities are carried out in support of the development of geological repositories for high-level radioactive waste （HLW） disposal. In addition to the generic URL and site-specific URL, a concept of ＂areaspecific URL＂, or the third type of URL, is proposed in this paper. It is referred to as the facility that is built at a site within an area that is considered as a potential area for HLW repository or built at a place near the future repository site, and may be regarded as a precursor to the development of a repository at the site. It acts as a ＂generic URL＂, but also acts as a ＂site-specific URL＂ to some extent. Considering the current situation in China, the most suitable option is to build an ＂area-specific URL＂ in Beishan area, the first priority region for China＇s high-level waste repository. With this strategy, the goal to build China＇s URL by 2020 mav be achieved, but the time left is limited.

Research Progress on Biological Risks of Agricultural GM Laboratory

The paper summarizes the research status on biological risks of agricultural GM laboratory and the risk factors of bio-safety in GM crops laboratory,and then proposes corresponding safety management suggestions.

Excavation of underground research laboratory ramp in granite using tunnel boring machine: Feasibility study

Underground research laboratory(URL)plays an important role in safe disposal of high-level radioactive waste(HLW).At present,the Xinchang site,located in Gansu Province of China,has been selected as the final site for China’s first URL,named Beishan URL.For this,a preliminary design of the Beishan URL has been proposed,including one spiral ramp,three shafts and two experimental levels.With advantages of fast advancing and limited disturbance to surrounding rock mass,the tunnel boring machine(TBM)method could be one of the excavation methods considered for the URL ramp.This paper introduces the feasibility study on using TBM to excavation of the Beishan URL ramp.The technical challenges for using TBM in Beishan URL are identified on the base of geological condition and specific layout of the spiral ramp.Then,the technical feasibility study on the specific issues,i.e.extremely hard rock mass,high abrasiveness,TBM operation,muck transportation,water drainage and material transportation,is investigated.This study demonstrates that TBM technology is a feasible method for the Beishan URL excavation.The results can also provide a reference for the design and construction of HLW disposal engineering in similar geological conditions.2020 Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics,Chinese Academy of Sciences.Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V.This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Biological Safety Issues in Animal Laboratory of Colleges and Universities

As a crucial link in fostering talented students, laboratories in universities have been attached great significance since they help developing practical op- erational ability of students. The unknown factors in laboratories are likely to pose threat to operators. Therefore, it is especially important to guarantee the safety of laboratories. The paper expounded the measures supposed to be taken in university lab-teaching based on bias-safety management problems and hoping to serve the research work and teaching by adopting proper and reasonable methods which are in accordance with scientific purposes.

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Retrospect and Lessons of 2004 Outbreak in China

Objective To summarize lessons learned from an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome （SARS） in China during the spring of 2004. Methods Data of SARS cases were officially reported by Beijing Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention （BCDC） and Anhui Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention （APCDC） and results of epidemiological investigations were collected and analyzed. Results Three generations of 11 cases of SARS were identified during the outbreak, Initial two cases were most likely to be infected in Diarrhea Virus Laboratory of National Institute of Virology, China Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and main mode of transmission was direct contact with SARS patients, Delay in detecting initial case resulted in spread of the illness at hospitals and communities with two generations of secondary cases, Conclusions SARS outbreak in 2004 has yielded following lessons for public health globally. （1） Lab bio-safety programs should be made and should be strictly abided by, Studies in highly pathogenic viruses such as SARS coronavirus should be utmost cautious, （2） Management systems of occupational exposure to virus and disease surveillance need to be strengthened to take all risk factors into account so as to detect potential patients with infectious disease as early as possible.

Laboratory biosafety in China: past, present, and future

The launch of the new journal,Biosafety and Health,presents me with a unique opportunity to recount the progress of laboratory biosafety(LB)in China and my contribution to this area over the past 30 years.Since the severe acute respiratory syndrome epidemic in 2003,China has constructed a primary network of high-level biosafety laboratories at different levels and established an expert team on LB.Furthermore,a series of LB management documents,including laws,regulations,standards,and guidelines,have been developed and published.This gradually maturing LB system has played a pivotal role in emerging infectious disease control and prevention,as well as in research,which in turn contributes to public health.In recent years,international collaboration between China and other countries has also been accelerated.Despite these achievements,we are still facing many challenges and opportunities in the field of LB.Sustainable LB development requires the joint efforts of the entire society and continuous international cooperation to safeguard global public health.

KAERI underground research laboratory: Overview of in-situ experiments

Social concerns regarding the safety of high-level radioactive waste have increased with growing public awareness of environmental issues and nuclear power.The performance assessment of deep geological disposal systems is crucial to reduce the uncertainties associated with high-level radioactive waste disposal and enhance the overall public confidence in nuclear safety.Accordingly,the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute(KAERI)has undertaken various studies on the development of a deep geological disposal system for high-level waste and disposal safety evaluation.The KAERI Underground Research Tunnel(KURT),South Korea's only underground research laboratory dedicated to radioactive waste disposal,was constructed in 2006 and expanded in 2015.Since its construction,numerous in-situ experiments have been conducted and are currently underway in the KURT.The KURT plays a significant role in assessing the feasibility,safety,stability and appropriateness of a deep geological disposal system in South Korea and also provides an opportunity to revitalize industrial-academic-scientific cooperation between related institutions.This report summarizes two key in-situ experiments and international joint research conducted between 2007 and 2017 to assess the performance of the engineered and natural barriers of the KURT.The research experiences from the in-situ tests conducted at the KURT will provide crucial information on the safety and feasibility validation of the deep geological disposal system and will be an important contributor to the success of the Korean high-level radioactive waste disposal program in the future.

Experiments and calculations of wave breaking and evolution of wave groups with high steepness

The evolution of the nonlinear wave groups in deep water is investigated through laboratory measurements and numerical analysis.Laboratory experiments are conducted in deep-water wave tank,focusing on the characteristics of breaking waves arising from the evolved wave train.Some quantitative results are obtained for the significant breaking wave train,including the surface elevation time series,the local geometry,and the energy dissipation.A nonlinear model for the evolution of the wave groups in deep water is developed by adding eddy viscosity dissipation terms in the High Level Irrotational Green-Naghdi(HLIGN)equations.The results of the simulation are compared with the laboratory measurements,and good agreement is observed for the evolved wave train.