Bernd Leiss, Janos Urai, Gernold Zulauf

"Significance of long-term deformation and permeability of rock salt and claystones for storage and waste disposal"

Rock salt and claystones are generally characterized by low porosity and permeability so that they are qualified as geological barriers. They serve as reservoir rocks for oil and gas and they are under consideration for high-level nuclear waste repositories. In contrast to granite or similar crystalline rocks, claystones and rock salt display a ‚self-organising closure mechanism‘, which in case of unexpected brittle deformation ensures low porosity and permeability. In order to evaluate claystone and rocksalt with respect to their suitability as geological barriers, the deformation behaviour must be known for variable conditions. The workshop will deal with different aspects of salt and clay(stone) deformation at variable scales in space and time.