Investigation Of Temperature, Solution Strength, And Applied Stress Effects On Cation Exchange Processes In Different Geosynthetic Clay Liner Products

An extensive laboratory test program was conducted to analyze and compare the cation exchange processes in three different varieties of sodium bentonite (Na-B) geosynthetic clay liners (GCLs) over increased conditioning durations up to 32 days and investigate the effects of temperature, solution strength, and applied stress. The goal of this test program was to establish whether the variables of temperature, solution strength, and applied stress improved or degraded the engineering properties of GCLs in laboratory testing and municipal solid waste (MSW) landfill applications. The GCLs were conditioned in liquids of increasing ionic strength, using deionized water and 2, 50, and 200 mM CaCl2 solutions to represent control, pore water, mild MSW leachate, and harsh MSW leachate. Conditioning periods were 1 to 32 days. Tests were conducted at 5°C, 20°C, 40°C, and 60°C and at 0 kPa, 30 kPa, and 500 kPa to represent stresses experienced by the cover and bottom liner. These variables were selected to represent geoenvironmental conditions observed in MSW landfill systems. Cation exchange processes in the bentonite component of the GCL were quantified by measuring the bound cation (BC) concentrations and cation exchange capacities (CEC) of the specimens and by conducting index testing to determine the dimensional measurements, final moisture content, and swell index of the conditioned bentonite. The temperature, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, sodium and calcium concentrations of the conditioning fluids were measured periodically for all specimens and the sodium concentration was measured for all specimens tested at applied stress. Temperature, solution strength, and applied vertical stress all affected the cation exchange processes in the bentonite component of GCLs. Increasing temperature, increased solution strength and decreased applied vertical stress were observed to increase cation exchange processes. The results of this study can be applied to quality assurance evaluations of in-service GCLs. In addition, the observation of the study indicates that GCLs used in cover liner systems for MSW landfills may be susceptible to high rates of cation exchange due to low overburden stresses and high surface temperatures. GCLs used in bottom liner may experience inhibited cation exchange rates as a result of high vertical stresses and relative lower temperatures.