Pore waters extracted from compacted bentonite subjected to simultaneous heating and hydration

A compacted clay block of montmorillonite clay has been simultaneously subjected to heating and hydration by parallel and opposite fronts, in order to determine the physico-chemical effects of the thermohydraulic process on the clay and on its pore water. The pore waters of the clay have been extracted at ambient temperature after the thermal-hydration treatment by a compaction at high pressure (60 MPa) technique. They have been analyzed, and the chemistry has been evaluated by using the speciation program EQ3NR. The movement of salts towards hot areas has been observed as a result of the thermo-hydraulic gradients, but it is conditioned by anionic retention processes, which mainly affect the mobility of SO42− anions. The distributrion of the exchangeable cations is modified by the thermal gradient.