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Clays and clay minerals play a vital role in geotechnical engineering, offering both benefits and challenges in various applications. Their variability, affected by pore water chemistry and soil fabric, complicates use but enables targeted modifications. This course offers an introduction to clay mineralogy, properties, testing methods, and the associated challenges in environmental geotechnics.

The practice of landfilling, remediation of polluted sites and the disposal of radioactive waste are based on the same concepts of environmental protection. Understanding the contaminants behaviour and how to reduce their release to the environment is the key to remediating polluted sites and designing multi-barrier systems.

Introduction of basic knowledge about problems with contaminated sites, investigation of this sites, risque management, remediation and reclamation techniques as well as monitoring systems.Introduction in landfill design and engineering with focus on barrier- and drainage systems and lining materials, evaluation of geotechnical problems, e.g. stability

Practices of landfilling and remediation of contaminated sites and disposal of radioactive waste are based on the same concepts that aim to protect the environment. The assessment of contaminants that may leach into the environment as a function of time and how to reduce the rate of their release is key to the design of chemical, technical and geological barriers.

This lecture deals with prospective assessments of emerging technologies as well as with the assessment of long-term environmental impact caused by today's activities.

The main part of the course is the investigation of real samples of soils/sediments in the lab working in groups. A brief theoretical introduction into the overall principle and the meaning of physical, mineralogical and chemical parameters of soils and sediments and into each analytical method for their investigation will be given in advance.

In the course the students learn to measure X-ray diffraction patterns of minerals and to evaluate these using different software for qualitative and quantitative mineral composition as well as crystallographic parameters.