Analysis of Multistage and Other Creep Data for Domal Salts

There have existed for some time relatively sparse creep databases for a number of domal salts. Although all of these data were analyzed at the time they were reported, to date there has not been a comprehensive, overall evaluation within the same analysis framework. Such an evaluation may prove of value. The analysis methodology is based on the Multimechanism Deformation (M-D) description of salt creep and the corresponding model parameters determined from conventional creep tests. The constitutive model of creep wss formulated through application of principles involved in micromechanical modeling. It was possible, at minimum, to obtain the steady state parameters of the creep model from the data on the domal salts. When this was done, the creep of the domal salts, as compared to the well-defined Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) bedded clean salt, was either essentially identical to, or significantly harder (more creep resistant) than WIPP salt. Interestingly, the domal salts form two distinct groups, either sofl or hard, where the difference is roughly a factor often in creep rate between the twcl groups. As might be expected, this classification corresponds quite well to the differences in magnitude of effective creep volume losses of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) caverns as determined by the CAVEMAN cavern pressure history analysis, depending upon the specific dome or region within the dome. Creep response shoulcl also correlate to interior cavern conditions that produce salt falls. WMle, in general, the caverns in hard sah have a noticeably greater propensity for salt falls, a smaller number of similar events are exhibited even in the caverns in soft salt