Heat-induced moisture movement in a clay barrier I. Experimental modelling of borehole emplacement

The paper presents the results of a series laboratory experiments which were conducted to study the heat-induced moisture movement in a bentonitic clay buffer region. In the experimental investigations, hygro-thermal phenomena are induced by a cylindrical heater which is placed within the compacted buffer material located in a borehole centrally situated in a granite block. The paper summarizes the experimental methodologies and presents results for the time-dependent distribution of temperatures within the granite block and the residual moisture distribution within the buffer at the termination of the experiment.