Repository logo
 

Limiting membrane and diffusion behavior of a compacted sand-bentonite mixture for hydraulic and chemical containment

dc.contributor.authorFritz, Cameron John, author
dc.contributor.authorScalia, Joseph, IV, advisor
dc.contributor.authorShackelford, Charles D., advisor
dc.contributor.authorRonayne, Michael J., committee member
dc.date.accessioned2017-09-14T16:05:00Z
dc.date.available2017-09-14T16:05:00Z
dc.date.issued2017
dc.description.abstractSodium-bentonite (Na-bentonite) commonly is used either as an additive component or as the sole component of engineered barriers used for waste containment applications, because the tendency of Na-bentonite to exhibit high swell can result in the restriction of advective and diffusive contaminant transport. Additionally, compacted mixtures of Na-bentonite and sand can be an effective and economical alternative to barrier materials consisting only of natural clay (e.g., compacted clay liners) if the use of natural clay is not logistically or economically feasible. The existence of membrane behavior, i.e., the ability of a porous material to exhibit selective restriction of migrating chemical species from the clay pores, previously has been shown for typical engineered bentonite-based barriers commonly used in hydraulic and chemical containment applications, including compacted sand-bentonite (SB) mixtures. However, the extent to which clay membrane behavior may persist in the presence of highly concentrated chemical solutions, which have been shown to have an adverse effect on the magnitude of membrane behavior in clays, remains largely unknown, with few studies having quantified the limiting membrane and diffusion behavior of bentonite-based barrier materials. Moreover, the limiting membrane and diffusion behavior of compacted SB mixtures has not yet been evaluated. Based on these considerations, the purpose of this study was to quantify the limiting membrane and diffusion behavior of two specimens of a compacted SB mixture comprising 15 % Na-bentonite (by dry weight) by determining the threshold salt concentration at which measurable membrane behavior was eliminated. The specimens were exposed to a series of boundary monovalent salt solutions with increasingly higher source concentrations, Cot, until measured values of the membrane efficiency coefficient, ω (0 ≤ ω ≤ 1), were effectively nil (i.e., 0.000), representing the limiting condition at which measurable membrane behavior was eliminated. Overall, ω decreased from an average of 0.032 to 0.000 as Cot increased from 160 mM KCl to 3.27 M NaCl, resulting in a threshold concentration between 1.63 M and 3.27 M NaCl for both specimens that was much higher than the range of salt concentrations for which measurable membrane behavior previously was thought to exist. Effective diffusion coefficients, D*, for nonreactive chloride (Cl-) also were measured during membrane testing to evaluate possible changes in diffusion behavior corresponding to the progressive destruction of membrane behavior. However, D* was relatively constant throughout all testing stages (2.1 x 10-10 m2/s ≤ D* ≤ 3.0 x 10-10 m2/s), indicating that the corresponding decrease in ω from 0.032 to 0.000 had little to no effect on the diffusion of Cl-.
dc.format.mediumborn digital
dc.format.mediummasters theses
dc.identifierFritz_colostate_0053N_14305.pdf
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10217/183938
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherColorado State University. Libraries
dc.relation.ispartof2000-2019
dc.rightsCopyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.
dc.subjectbentonite
dc.subjectsand-bentonite
dc.subjectvan't Hoff
dc.subjectdiffusion
dc.subjectactivity method
dc.subjectsemipermeable membrane
dc.titleLimiting membrane and diffusion behavior of a compacted sand-bentonite mixture for hydraulic and chemical containment
dc.typeText
dcterms.rights.dplaThis Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights (https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/). You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
thesis.degree.disciplineCivil and Environmental Engineering
thesis.degree.grantorColorado State University
thesis.degree.levelMasters
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (M.S.)

Files

Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Fritz_colostate_0053N_14305.pdf
Size:
3.7 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format