Numerical Simulation of subsurface disposal of industrial residues in coal mines

In solid rock aquifers low matrix permeability is often combined with fractures and faults of different scales. Therefore, numerical modeling of such coupled systems is highly complex. Flow and transport in fractures have to be modeled along discrete surfaces joint to the common matrix representation. This leads to high demands upon the quality of finite elemene mesh generation. A second problem is the evaluation of field parameters needed in the design of realistic models to simulate natural systems. This paper summarizes the evaluation methods used to obtain the model parameters, such as permeability and statistical fracture data, effective diffusion and sorption coefficiants. The parameters are used to perform numerical calculations to predict the water table rise in the near field of the underground repository and the now and transport processes after the coal mines are depleted.