Scale Dependence of Effective Media Properties

by V. C. Tidwell, Sandia Natl Lab, Albuquerque, United States,
J. D. VonDoemming, Sandia Natl Lab, Albuquerque, United States,
K. Martinez, Sandia Natl Lab, Albuquerque, United States,



Document Type: Proceeding Paper

Part of: High Level Radioactive Waste Management 1993

Abstract:

For problems where media properties are measured at one scale and applied at another, scaling laws or models must be used in order to define effective properties at the scale of interest. The accuracy of such models will play a critical role in predicting flow and transport through the Yucca Mountain Test Site given the sensitivity of these calculations to the input property fields. Therefore, a research program has been established to gain a fundamental understanding of how properties scale with the aim of developing and testing models that describe scaling behavior in a quantitative manner. Scaling of constitutive rock properties is investigated through physical experimentation involving the collection of suites of gas permeability data measured over a range of discrete scales. Also, various physical characteristics of property heterogeneity and the means by which the heterogeneity is measured and described and systematically investigated to evaluate their influence on scaling behavior. This paper summarizes the approach that is being taken toward this goal and presents the results of a scoping study that was conducted to evaluate the feasibility of the proposed research.

Subject Headings: Fouling | Scale models | Feasibility studies | Radioactive wastes | Rock properties | Rock mechanics | Physical properties

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