On behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economics and Technology (BMWi), the Project Management Agency of the Research Centre Karlsruhe contracted DBE TECHNOLOGY GmbH, the Federal Office for Geosciences and Resources (BGR) and the Company for Facility and Reactor Safety (GRS) with the R&D project URSEL (Investigations on the robustness of the safety demonstration for HAW repository systems in magmatic host rocks). 

The main objective of the R&D project URSEL is to develop a methodical approach for the safety assessment, the optimization and the evaluation of the robustness of the repository system and the safety demonstration for a HAW repository in magmatic rocks with a complex geological structure. This methodology should be tested at a Russian site. In contrast to repository concepts for clay and salt, the complete containment of the radioactive waste in crystalline host rocks can not be assumed. Possible restrictions of the containment potential of the geological barrier can be derived from existing fracture systems and their future development. In this context the question has to be solved to what extent safety can rely on additional retarding functions of the geological barrier. Furthermore the requirements for the complementary technical barriers have to be specified so that the compliance with the safety goals can be demonstrated with sufficient robustness. 

The project will run for three and a half year. 

By order of the Project Management Agency of the Research Centre Karlsruhe, DBE TECHNOLOGY GmbH performed already several R&D projects on the final disposal of radioactive waste in crystalline rocks. These projects have been accomplished in cooperation with Russian agencies and expert organizations (esp. with VNIPI Promtechnologii, Moscow). As a first step the development of a methodical approach for site exploration was the main issue of a research project (ASTER project). Then, as a next step, the effectiveness of the geological and geotechnical barriers has been investigated taking the Russian Jenissejskij site as an example (WIBASTA project).

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