A statistical reappraisal of the relationship between liquid limit and specific surface area, cation exchange capacity and activity of clays

Abstract

More than 500 datasets from the literature have been used to evaluate the relationships of specific surface area (SSA), cation exchange capacity (CEC) and activity versus the liquid limit (LL). The correlations gave R2 values ranging between 0.71 and 0.92. Independent data were also used to validate the correlations. Estimated SSA values slightly overestimate the measured SSA up to 100 m2/g. Regarding the estimated CEC values, they overestimated the measured CEC values up to 20 meq/(100 g). A probabilistic approach was performed for the correlations of SSA, CEC and activity versus LL. The analysis shows that the relations of SSA, CEC and activity with LL are robust. Using the LL values, it is possible to assess other basic engineering properties of clays. Keywords: Liquid limit (LL), Specific surface area (SSA), Cation exchange capacity (CEC), Activity, statistical analysis