Modelling approaches for anion-exclusion in compacted Na-bentonite

The accessible porosity for Cl⁻ in bentonite is smaller than the the total porosity due to anion repulsion (exclusion) by the surface of montmorillonite, the main mineral in bentonite. The accessible porosity is a function of the bentonite density and the salt concentration. Anion exclusion data were gathered from the literature, reprocessed in a coherent data set, and modelled using four different models. Very simple models, with or without anion access to the interlayer space, are successful in reproducing trends in anion exclusion in bentonite as a function of ionic strength in the external solution and montmorillonite bulk dry densities in the bentonite. However, a model that considers clay microstructure changes as a function of bentonite compaction and ionic strength is necessary to reproduce observed trends in the data for all experimental conditions within a single model. Our predictive model excludes anions from the interlayer space and relates the interlayer porosity to the ionic strength and the montmorillonite bulk dry density. This presentation offers a good fit for measured anion accessible porosities in bentonites over a wide range of conditions and is also in agreement with microscopic observations.