Retrieving hazardous waste stored in a drillhole
OwnerRichard A. Muller, Elizabeth Mullerinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A hazardous waste canister includes a housing that defines an interior volume configured to store nuclear waste, the housing configured to enclose the nuclear waste in a human-unoccupiable drillhole formed from a terranean surface into a subterranean formation; and a knob coupled to the housing at an end of the canister, the knob configured to attach to a set of latching calipers of a latching assembly coupled to a downhole conveyance for moving the canister from the human-unoccupiable drillhole to the terranean surface.
Claims33
A hazardous waste canister, comprising:
- a housing that defines an interior volume configured to store nuclear waste, the housing configured to enclose the nuclear waste in a human-unoccupiable drillhole formed from a terranean surface into a subterranean formation;
- and
- a knob coupled to the housing at an end of the canister, the knob configured to attach to a set of latching calipers of a latching assembly coupled to a downhole conveyance for moving the canister from the human-unoccupiable drillhole to the terranean surface.
A downhole tool, comprising:
- a top sub-assembly configured to couple to a downhole conveyance;
- and
- a latching assembly, comprising:
- at least one set of latching calipers configured to couple to a knob attached to a housing at an end of a hazardous waste canister, the housing defining an interior volume configured to store nuclear waste in a human-unoccupiable drillhole formed from a terranean surface into a subterranean formation;
- and
- a locking ring configured to secure the at least one set of latching calipers coupled to the knob.
A hazardous waste repository, comprising:
- a human-unoccupiable drillhole formed from a terranean surface into a subterranean formation, the drillhole comprising a disposal region configured to emplace at least one hazardous waste canister that enclose hazardous waste;
- and
- a casing installed in at least a portion of the drillhole, the casing comprising stainless steel, Teflon, or plastic.
A hazardous waste repository, comprising:
- a human-unoccupiable drillhole formed from a terranean surface into a subterranean formation, the drillhole comprising:
- a first access drillhole portion formed from the terranean surface toward or into the subterranean formation;
- a second access drillhole portion formed from the terranean surface toward or into the subterranean formation;
- and
- a disposal drillhole region formed in the subterranean formation and configured to emplace one or more hazardous waste canisters that enclose hazardous waste, wherein the disposal drillhole region is coupled within the subterranean formation to the first and second access drillhole portions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.