Thermo-hydro-mechanical couplings in radioactive waste disposal

International audienceThis chapter presents some of the main issues related to the thermo-hydro-mechanical couplings which can be encountered in the framework of radioactive waste disposal problems and their modeling. First, the different kinds of radioactive wastes are briefly reviewed, and the deep underground disposal solution, based on a multi-barrier concept, is detailed. With regards to the rock mechanics issue, the main processes which can occur at short and long term are explained. Then, the theoretical formulation underlying the thermo-hydro-mechanical studies are fully detailed and some indications on numerical implementation are given. In addition, a specific hydro-mechanical formulation related to a well identified fracture is exposed. Finally, in order to appraise the influence of the various thermo-hydro-mechanical couplings, the study of the short term behavior of a generic high level wastes repository is proposed as an illustration of the previous developments