Experimental on electro-osmotic consolidation of bentonite reinforced by nano-Fe3O4

Abstract

Abstract In order to study the effect of nano-Fe3O4 on the electro-osmotic consolidation of bentonite, four groups of electro-osmotic consolidation tests (T1, T2, T3 and T4) of bentonite with different content of nano-Fe3O4 (0‰, 1‰, 2‰ and 3‰) were carried out with self-design electro-osmotic test device, and the change laws of current, potential, drainage, water content, pH value and shear strength during the test were analyzed. The results showed that the current and effective potential decreased with the increasing of time. After 48 hours, the current of T1-T4 decreased by 99.48%, 97.60%, 96.81% and 95.77%, respectively. The effective potential of T2 decreased the slowest, and the potential loss was significantly lower than the other groups. During the test, the drainage rate increased with the increasing of time. T2 has the largest drainage volume and the fastest drainage rate, and its water content is the lowest. The pH value increased with the increasing of the distance from the anode, while the shear strength decreased with the increasing of the distance from the anode. The results showed that nano-Fe3O4 could significantly increased the consolidation and drainage effect of bentonite.