Effect of Heating and Drying on Clay-Barrier Gas-Permeability
Publication: Geo-Congress 2022
ABSTRACT
The cracking behavior of clay material due to desiccation has been a subject of intense research in the last few years. However, the enhance in gas permeability induced by the presence of drying cracks in clays has not been well investigated yet, particularly in applications related to clay barrier materials to isolate dangerous pollutants like high level nuclear waste (HLW). The aim of this research is to better understand how clay barrier materials behave upon heating and drying processes, and also to investigate how gas permeability will change as the moisture decrease and drying cracks evolve. This information will be instrumental to achieve a safe and optimal design of repositories for HLW. The MX-80 bentonite from Wyoming (US) is the material adopted in this study. Two compacted samples were prepared at two initial dry densities (i.e., ρd = 1.3g/cm3 and ρd = 1.6g/cm3) and at the same initial liquid degree of saturation Sr = 46%. The samples were then heated and dried in the oven at 90°C up to different target Sr values. Gas permeability test under controlled conditions in the lab were conducted afterwards. A significant impact of drying cracks on gas flow properties was observed.
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Geo-Congress 2022
Pages: 343 - 350
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© 2020 ASCE.
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Published online: Mar 17, 2022
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