Abstract
Effects of gas permeation on the impervious characteristics of bentonite/sand mixtures were studied experimentally by conducting permeability tests with various fluids and microscopic observations. In this test, hydraulic permeabilities were measured before/after helium gas was applied to permeate through the mixtures.
It was found that gas formed preferential paths to migrate through the mixtures, and that the bentonite/sand mixtures never deteriorated in impervious capacity because the paths were-filled with swelling bentonite in re-saturation.
