Aqueous Polymer Effects on Volumetric Swelling of Na-Montmorillonite
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 19, Issue 1
Abstract
Physicochemical interactions between polymer molecules and clay particles affect the swelling rate and magnitude of expansive clay soils. The effectiveness of aqueous solutions of three polymers: Sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), polyacrylamide (PAM), polyethylene oxide (PEO) ranging in concentration from , as soil stabilization agents against Na-montmorillonite swelling was analyzed. Rates of volumetric swelling of Na-montmorillonite upon hydration were recorded over durations ranging from , and data were used to compute the volumetric swelling ratio (VSR), an expression of the clay volume at any time relative to the initial volume of clay in the immersion tube. The results show that PAM, the cationic polymer reduces the VSR by as much as 40% relative to distilled water. PAM molecular weight and concentration have minimal effects on VSR although sorption of PAM of higher molecular weight (PAM B) is favored at aqueous concentration below . Data from x-ray diffraction and batch sorption tests on dried Na-montmorillonite samples indicate that postsorption/swelling interlayer spacings of 0.74 and for PAM A (molecular ) and PAM B (molecular ) respectively, are attained through fixation of PAM molecules in clay interlayer space during sorption at an aqueous concentration of . Test results for CMC (the anionic polymer) and PEO (the neutral polymer) show that swelling is not significantly reduced relative to that of distilled water. PAM can be used at aqueous concentrations between 0.5 and as an effective stabilization agent for expansive soils.
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Acknowledgments
The research that led to this paper was sponsored by Duke Energy Corporation through a strategic research grant awarded to the first two writers at the Global Institute for Energy and Environmental Systems (GIEES) of the University of North Carolina Charlotte. This work was also funded partially by DuPont Engineering when the first two writers were at the Center for Environmental Engineering Science and Technology (CEEST) of the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Both corporations support strategic research but do not necessarily concur with the expressed opinions of the writers. The writers remain grateful to both sponsors for providing resources to support this work.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 19 • Issue 1 • January 2007
Pages: 84 - 90
Copyright
© 2007 ASCE.
History
Received: Feb 11, 2005
Accepted: Jul 29, 2005
Published online: Jan 1, 2007
Published in print: Jan 2007
Notes
Note. Associate Editor: Hilary I. Inyang
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