Boundary-Value Problem for Viscoelastic Creep in Deeply Imbedded Salt Vaults

In this paper the authors develop a mathematical model and associated boundary-value problem for the encapsulating mechanism of a deeply imbedded salt vault at the Department of Energy's Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in Carlsbad, New Mexico. The solution of the resulting boundary-value problem, which is the subject of a follow-on paper, provides significant, accurate information for predicting the time history encapsulating mechanism of salt vaults.