ABSTRACT
The variation in both dry density and temperature caused by the heating of a compacted, unsaturated bentonite-sand mixture tends to be the most important factor in the engineering of radioactive waste disposal barriers. The thermal effort of the bentonite-sand mixture is a significant trigger fac-tor in the coupling phenomena. Several previous experimental studies using different dry densities have reported that the most affected properties are pore pressure and expansion deformation. However, most reports lack experimental data on determination of deformation and measurement of associated pore pressures owing to a progressive increase in temperature. This study aims to establish the connection between the basic deformation properties and pore pressures produced under heating conditions and the effect on hydro-mechanical properties of a bentonite-sand mixture. This study investigated the shrinkage/expansion behavior for temperatures up to 100°C and considered the occurrence of pore pressure in the void structure for a variety of temperatures.
