Foundry Green Sands as Hydraulic Barriers: Laboratory Study
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 126, Issue 12
Abstract
A laboratory testing program was conducted to assess the use of foundry sands from gray iron foundries, typically called green sands, as hydraulic barrier materials. Foundry green sands are mixtures of fine uniform sand, bentonite, and other additives. Specimens of foundry sand were compacted in the laboratory at a variety of water contents and compactive efforts and then permeated in rigid-wall and flexible-wall permeameters to define relationships between hydraulic conductivity, compaction water content, and dry unit weight. Additional tests were conducted to assess how hydraulic conductivity of compacted foundry sand is affected by environmental stresses such as desiccation, freeze-thaw, and chemical permeation. Results of the tests show that the hydraulic conductivity of foundry sand is sensitive to the same variables that affect hydraulic conductivity of compacted clays (i.e., compaction water content, and compactive effort). However, hydraulic conductivities <10−7 cm/s can be obtained for many foundry sands using a broad range of water contents and compactive efforts, including water contents dry of optimum and at lower compactive effort. The hydraulic conductivity of foundry sand was generally unaffected by freeze-thaw, desiccation, or permeation with 0.1 N salt solution or municipal solid waste leachate, but was incompatible with acetic acid (pH = 3.5). Hydraulic conductivity of foundry sands correlates well with bentonite content and liquid limit, with hydraulic conductivity less than 10−7 cm/s being achieved for bentonite content ≥6% and/or liquid limit >20.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 126 • Issue 12 • December 2000
Pages: 1174 - 1183
History
Received: Nov 23, 1999
Published online: Dec 1, 2000
Published in print: Dec 2000
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