R&D supporting the technology for safe and practical HLW disposal in Japan

Seo, Toshihiro ; Sasao, Eiji   ; Notoya, Shin ; Shimizu, Kazuhiko

JAEA has promoted research and development of HLW disposal technology to contribute to both implementation and safety regulation. This R&D covers the geological environment, repository engineering and performance assessment. At two underground laboratories (Mizunami and Horonobe), surface-based investigations have been completed, and the excavation of shafts and drifts is underway. A complementary study of natural disruptive phenomena, such as volcanism and faulting, has also been conducted. In the ENTRY and QUALITY research facilities, the development of engineering technologies with associated advanced models and databases for quantification of the long-term evolution of the near-field has been carried out. To integrate these R&D activities and manage the huge amount of data that they produce, JAEA has initiated a novel project to develop an advanced knowledge management system which will provide a technical knowledge base for supporting both implementers and regulators.