Modeling cation diffusion in compacted water-saturated Na-bentonite at low ionic strength

Sodium bentonites are used as barrier materials for the isolation of landfills and are under consideration for a similar use in the subsurface storage of high-level radioactive waste. The performance of these barriers is determined in large part by molecular diffusion in the bentonite pore space. We tested two current models of cation diffusion in bentonite against experimental data on the relative apparent diffusion coefficients of two representative cations, sodium and strontium. On the 'macropore/nanopore' model, solute molecules are divided into two categories, with unequal pore-scale diffusion coefficients, based on location: in macropores or in interlayer nanopores. On the 'surface diffusion' model, solute molecules are divided into categories based on chemical speciation: dissolved or adsorbed. The macropore/nanopore model agrees with all experimental data at partial montmorillonite dry densities ranging from 0.2 (a dilute bentonite gel) to 1.7 kg dm{sup -3} (a highly compacted bentonite with most of its pore space located in interlayer nanopores), whereas the surface diffusion model fails at partial montmorillonite dry densities greater than about 1.2 kg dm{sup -3}

Tracer diffusion in compacted, water-saturated bentonite

Compacted Na-bentonite clay barriers, widely used in the isolation of solid-waste landfills and other contaminated sites, have been proposed for a similar use in the disposal of high-level radioactive waste. Molecular diffusion through the pore space in these barriers plays a key role in their performance, thus motivating recent measurements of the apparent diffusion coefficient tensor of water tracers in compacted, water-saturated Na-bentonites. In the present study, we introduce a conceptual model in which the pore space of water-saturated bentonite is divided into 'macropore' and 'interlayer nanopore' compartments. With this model we determine quantitatively the relative contributions of pore-network geometry (expressed as a geometric factor) and of the diffusive behavior of water molecules near montmorillonite basal surfaces (expressed as a constrictivity factor) to the apparent diffusion coefficient tensor. Our model predicts, in agreement with experiment, that the mean principal value of the apparent diffusion coefficient tensor follows a single relationship when plotted against the partial montmorillonite dry density (mass of montmorillonite per combined volume of montmorillonite and pore space). Using a single fitted parameter, the mean principal geometric factor, our model successfully describes this relationship for a broad range of bentonite-water systems, from dilute gel to highly-compacted bentonite with 80% of its pore water in interlayer nanopores

A novel experimental procedure to investigate the biodegradation of NAPL under unsaturated conditions

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