Chemical composition of ground water and the locations of permeable zones in the Yucca Mountain area, Nevada

Benson, Larry; Robison, J.H.; Blankennagel, Richard K.; Ogard, A.E.

doi:10.3133/ofr83854

Cited by 26 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…This interpretation effectively removes the repository from the saturated-zone flow system. It appears to be consistent with published isotopic data (Benson et al, 1983), watertemperature data, and aeromagnetic data (Fridrich et al, 1991 The cause of the gradient is of concern for two reasons. First, the controlling structure may not be durable over the repository lifetime, in which case modeling of contaminant releases that depends in some way on the continuing existence of the gradient would be flawed.…”

Section: Saturated Zonesupporting

confidence: 76%

Scenarios constructed for nominal flow in the presence of a repository at Yucca Mountain and vicinity

Barr¹,

Hunter²,

Dunn

et al. 1995

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Section: Saturated Zonesupporting

confidence: 76%

Scenarios constructed for nominal flow in the presence of a repository at Yucca Mountain and vicinity

Barr¹,

Hunter²,

Dunn

et al. 1995

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“…Present-day ground-water compositions also become more calcic and less sodic eastward (Benson et al, 1983). Paleozoic limestone and dolomite underlie the tuff aquifers and may have provided a source of Ca in ground water in the eastern part of Yucca Mountain.…”

Section: Factors Controlling Diagenesismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Win ograd and Thordarson (1975) divided ground water of the NTS into three major types: (1) Ca-Mg-bicarbonate water in Paleozoic carbonate aquifers, (2) Na-K-bicarbonate water in tuff aquifers, and (3) Ca-MgNa-bicarbonate water in areas of cross flow and mixing of the first two types. Most ground waters of Yucca Mountain are Na-K-bicarbonate types typical of tuff aquifers, but an integral water sample from eastern Yucca Mountain in drill hole UE-25p#1 is similar to mixed water of the Ca-Mg-Na-bicarbonate type (Benson et al, 1983;Ogard and Kerrisk, 1984). The trend towards more calcic compositions of clinoptilolitegroup minerals with increasing depth in eastern Yucca Mountain may represent progressive dilution of ground water from the tuff aquifer with Ca-Mg-bicarbonate ground water from the Paleozoic carbonate aquifer.…”

Section: Factors Controlling Diagenesismentioning

confidence: 99%

Distribution and Chemistry of Diagenetic Minerals at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada

Broxton

Bish

Warren

1987

Clays and clay miner.

121

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Abstract--Yucca Mountain is being studied as a potential site in southern Nevada for an underground, high-level nuclear waste repository. A major consideration for selecting this site is the presence of abundant zeolites in Miocene ash-flow tufts underlying the region. Beneath Yucca Mountain four diagenetic mineral zones have been recognized that become progressively less hydrous with depth.Zone I, the shallowest zone, is 375-584 m thick in the central part of Yucca Mountain, but 170 m thick to the north. Zone I contains vitric tufts that consist of uualtered volcanic glass and minor smectite, opal, heulandite, and Ca-rich clinoptilolite. Zone II thins south to north from 700 to 480 m and is characterized by complete replacement of volcanic glass by clinoptilolite with and without mordenite, and by lesser amounts of opal, K-feldspar, quartz, and smectite. Zone III thins south to north from 400 to 98 m thick and consists of analcime, K-feldspar, quartz, and minor calcite and smectite. Heulandite occurs locally at the top of zone III in the eastern part of Yucca Mountain. Zone IV occurs in the deepest structural levels of the volcanic pile and is characterized by albite, K-feldspar, quartz, and minor calcite and smectite.Clinoptilolite and heulandites in zone I have uniform Ca-rich compositions (60-90 mole % Ca) and Si:AI ratios that are mainly between 4.0 and 4.6. In contrast, clinoptilolites deeper in the volcanic sequence have highly variable compositions that vary vertically and laterally. Deeper clinoptilolites in the eastern part of Yucca Mountain are calcic-potassic and tend to become more calcium-rich with depth. Clinoptilolites at equivalent stratigraphic levels on the western side of Yucca Mountain have sodic-potassic compositions and tend to become more sodium-rich with depth. Despite their differences in exchangeable cation compositions these two deeper compositional suites have similar Si:A1 ratios, generally between 4.4 and 5.0. Analcimes have nearly pure end-member compositions, typical of these minerals formed by diagenetic alteration of siliceous volcanic glass; however, K-feldspars are Si-rich compared to the ideal feldspar formula.Bulk-rock contents of Si, Na, K, Ca, and Mg of zeolitic tufts generally differ significantly from stratigraphically equivalent vitric tufts, suggesting that zeolite diagenesis took place in an open chemical system. Both the whole rock and the clinoptilolite are relatively rich in Ca and Mg in the eastern part of Yucca Mountain and rich in Na in the western part. The Ca-and Mg-rich compositions of the zeolitized tufts in the eastern part of Yucca Mountain may be due to cation exchange by the sorptive minerals with ground water partially derived from underlying Paleozoic carbonate aquifers.Diagenetic zones become thinner and occur at stratigraphically higher levels from south to north across Yucca Mountain, probably due to a higher geothermal gradient in the northern part of the area. The diagenetic zones were established when the geothermal gradient was greater than it ...

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“…Compositions of water from these wells have been reported primarily by Benson et al (1983), Ogard and Kerrisk (1984), and Benson and McKinley (1985). Table I lists the 15 wells from Yucca Mountain and vicinity that were reviewed as part of this report.…”

Section: Yucca Mountain Wellsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Groundwater chemistry at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, and vicinity

Kerrisk¹

1987

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Chemical composition of ground water and the locations of permeable zones in the Yucca Mountain area, Nevada

Cited by 26 publications

References 3 publications

Scenarios constructed for nominal flow in the presence of a repository at Yucca Mountain and vicinity

Scenarios constructed for nominal flow in the presence of a repository at Yucca Mountain and vicinity

Distribution and Chemistry of Diagenetic Minerals at Yucca Mountain, Nye County, Nevada

Groundwater chemistry at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, and vicinity

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