Electrical resistivity monitoring of the thermomechanical heater test in yucca mountain

Of the several thermal, mechanical nd hydrological measurements being used to monitor the rock mass response, electrical resistance tomography (ERT) is being used to monitor the movement of liquid water with a special interest in the the movement of condensate out of the system. Four boreholes, containing a total of 30 ERT electrodes, were drilled to form the sides of a 30 foot square with the heater at the center and perpendicular to the plane of the electrodes. Images of resistivity change were calculated using data collected before and during the heating episode. The changes recovered show a region of decreasing resistivity approximately centered around the heater. the size this region grows with time and the resistivity decreases become stronger. The changes in resistivity are caused by both temperature and saturation changes. The Waxman Smits model has been sued to calculate rock saturation after accounting for temperature effects. The saturation estimates suggest that a region of drying develops around the heater and grows over time. The estimates also show regions increase in saturation over time, primarily below and to the sides of the heater. The accuracy of the saturation estimates depends on several factors that are only partly understood at the time of writing