The invention provides a method for predicting hydration expansibility of a compacted
bentonite material, which comprises the following steps of: generalizing soil particles into a spherical shape, and dividing a compacted
bentonite structure into a characteristic structure element consisting of four particles based on a space accumulation configuration; according to constraint conditions of
apparent density, elastic deformation
energy minimization and structural entropy maximization of the soil body structure, the distribution probability of each characteristic structure element is solved; a
Hertz contact model is adopted to calculate the
expansive force between particles in the characteristic structure elements; calculating the equivalent
expansive force of each characteristic structure element through a
finite element method; based on the Hill lemma, the macroscopic hydration expansibility of the compacted
bentonite structure is predicted. According to the method, the prediction process is simple, the calculated amount is moderate, the hydration expansibility of the compacted bentonite structures with different dry densities can be accurately and theoretically predicted, and theoretical guidance can be provided for design and prediction of the hydration expansibility of the compacted bentonite structures in the environments of refuse landfills, nuclear waste repositories and the like.