Unsaturated hydraulic properties of cemented tailings backfill that contains sodium silicate

Recycling the mine waste (tailings) into cemented tailings backfill has economical and environmental advantages for the mining industry. One of the most recent types of cemented tailings backfill is gelfill (GF), a backfill that contains sodium silicate as chemical additive. GF is typically made of tailings, water, binder and chemical additives (sodium silicate gel). It is a promising mine tailings backfill technology. From a design point of view, the environmental performance or durability of GF structures is considered as a key factor. Due to the fact that GF structures are cementitious tailings, their durability and environmental performance depend on their ability to resist the flow of aggressive elements (water and oxygen). Thus, understanding the unsaturated hydraulic properties of GF is essential for a cost-effective, environmentally friendly and durable design of GF structures. However, there is a lack of information with regards to unsaturated hydraulic properties of GF, the factors that affect them and their evolution with time. Hence, the unsaturated hydraulic properties (water retention curve (WRC) or water characteristic curve, air entry value (AEV), residual water content, unsaturated hydraulic conductivity) of GF are investigated in this paper. GF samples of various compositions and cured in room temperature for different times (3, 7, 28, and 90days) are considered. Saturated hydraulic conductivity and microstructural tests have been conducted; WRCs are measured by using a WP4-T dewpoint potentiameter and the saline solution method. Unsaturated hydraulic conductivity is predicted using the van Genuchten (1980) equation. The water retention curve (WRC) is determined as the relationship between volumetric water content and suction for each GF mix and curing time. The van Genuchten (1980) equation is used to simulate the WRC to best-fit the experimental data. AEV and residual water content are also computed for each mix and curing time. Furthermore, functions are developed to predict the evolution of AEVs, residual water content and fitting parameters of the van Genuchten model with degree of hydration. Important outcomes have been achieved with regards to unsaturated hydraulic properties. The unsaturated hydraulic conductivity of GF was calculated to decrease when the suction, binder content, and degree of hydration increase. The effects of binder content and degree of hydration are more obvious at low suction ranges. The obtained results would contribute to a better design and assessment of the durability and environmental performance of GF structures.