A model for hydraulic conductivity of compacted bentonite – inclusion of microstructure effects under confined wetting

Hydraulic behaviour of compacted smectite-rich clays is of practical interest in geological disposal of high-level nuclear waste, as the buffer component of the engineered barrier system. Despite several decades of research, a sound theoretical description of the unsaturated hydraulic conductivity of clay buffer (compacted bentonite) and its performance remains challenging. This is evidenced by experimental data on unsaturated hydraulic...