The distinctive response of clay minerals to water indicated that it should be possible to determine the water sensitivities of sedimentary rock samples directly by watervapor adsorption measm~ments. Therefore, the adsorption of water-vapor by standard clay samples and by core samples fl'om oil-producing formations has been investigated.Water-vapor adsorption isotherms of the montmorillonite and kaolinite samples are characteristic of the clay type and serve as an aid in their identification. The illite isotherm was intei~ncdiate between those of the other two types.Water-vapor adsorption by core samples from oil-producing formations varied with the contents of swelling clays and with water-sensitivities as indicated by previous x-ray analyses and permeability studies. Core samples containing montmorillonite clay adsorbed water vapor strongly and exhibited typical adsorption-desorption hysteresis. Correlations of nitrogen and water-vapor adsorption studies wi~h clay analyses and permeability measurements show ~hat the water-vapor adsorption method is a promising means for the direct measurement of the water sensitivities of sedimentary formations.

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