Inthispaper,withK+,Ca2+andFe3+astheobjectsofstudy,retardationofsoil–bentonite(SB)barriermaterialsformetalionswithdifferentvalencesisinvestigated,andtheadsorptionmechanism,migrationpatternsandpermeationbehaviorareexploredsoastoprovideatheoreticalbasisfortheirapplication.TheresultsshowthattheadsorptionprocessformetalionswithdifferentvalencesbySBbarriermaterialsisfast,andthehigherthevalence,thegreatertheadsorptioncapacity.Thefttingoftheadsorptionprocessconformstopseudo-second-orderadsorptionkineticsandLangmuir–Freundlichadsorptionequation,whichexplainsthatchemicaladsorptionisthedominatingstateandthattheSBsurfacehascertainheterogeneity.ThepermeabilitycoeffcientofK+,Ca2+andFe3+inSBeachhasamaximumandthehigherthevalence,thesoonerthemaximumappears.Alsothehigherthevalence,themoreobvioustheeffectonSBretardationperformance;andthesoonertheionbreaksthroughthebarrierwallcompletely,thatis,thewall’sretardationperformanceforhighervalentionsmaydecline.
