influence of potassium concentration on the swelling and.pdfVIP

Clay Minerals (1991)26, 255-268 I N F L U E N C E OF P O T A S S I U M C O N C E N T R A T I O N ON T H E S W E L L I N G A N D C O M P A C T I O N OF M I X E D (NA,K) I O N - E X C H A N G E D M O N T M O R I L L O N I T E J. H. D E N I S , M. J. K E A L L , P. L. H A L L AND G. H. M E E T E N Schlumberger Cambridge Research, PO Box 153, Cambridge, CB3 0HG, UK (Received 4 June I990; revised 1I October 1990) A B ST R A CT: Oedometer swellingand compactiontests up to a maximumpressure of 32bars were made on the Wyoming montmorillonite SWy-1 with a range of mixed (Na,K) exchange ion compositions.The permeabilities and water diffusivitiesofthe compactedclayswere calculatedusing soil physics theory. Significant inhibition of swelling from that of the Na-montmorillonite is developedfor K fractionsin the range 0.30 K+ 0.56. However,the water diffusivityincreasesby a factor of approximatelysix as the K exchange fraction increases from 0 to 0-7. Permeabilities to water flow show a power-law dependence on the void ratio e. XRD measurements at controlledhumidityyield equilibrium interlayer spacingswhichin general increase with both increasingrelative humidity and increasingNa exchange fraction. The extent of swellingis stronglyinhibited in clayshavingNa exchangefractionsof 0.44or less, in good agreement with the oedometer studies. Potassium electrolytes, normally K O H or KC1, have found widespread use in petroleum engineering as components of inhibitive water-based drilling fluids designed for the control of borehole gauge in chemically active fine grained argillaceous rocks such as shales and mudstones. Such electr