Microstructure of smectite clays and engineering perfomance / Микроструктура смектитовых глин и их технические характеристики

Studies on the properties and behaviour of clay soils, conducted in Soil Engineering, have revealed the importance of Soil Structure in the control of the properties and response performance of clays. Early descriptions of clay soil structure, in the 1950s–1960s, using such terms as ‘honeycomb’, ‘cardhouse’, ‘flocculated’, ‘dispersed’ and ‘oriented’ testify to the level of descriptive scrutiny of the micromorphology of clay soils. Many of these descriptive terms were based on evidence or deductions gained using thin sections for light microscopy and controlled experiments on various kinds of clays. With more sophisticated techniques presently available, for example transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and nuclear magnetic resonance, and with considerable input from colleagues in Soil Science and Clay Mineralogy working on the properties and characteristics of clays, we have learnt more not only about soil structure but also about the importance and role of the microstructural units (MUs) that make up the total soil structure. The arrangement of these MUs, (domains, peds, aggregate groups, etc. ) and the bondings established between them are key to the macrostructural integrity of a soil. <...>