The 10-Å clay components of sedimentary rocks (“illites”) are commonly mixtures of 100% nonexpandable illite and an ordered illite/smectite mixed-layer mineral. If the proportion of the illite/ smectite in a mixture is sufficient to produce a measurable reflection between 33–35°2θ (CuKα radiation) that is noncoincident with an illite reflection, the ratio of component layers and type of interstratification for the mixed-layer mineral can be determined. The identification technique developed in this study rests upon the following experimental findings for ordered illite/smectites of diagenetic origin: (1) the thickness of the illite layer in illite/smectites is 9.97 Å; (2) the thickness of smectite-ethylene glycol complex ranges from 16.7 to 16.9 Å; (3) illite/smectites form a continuous sequence of interstratification types—random, random/IS, IS, IS/ISII, ISII—and each type is related to a specific range of expandability.

The new technique broadens the computer simulation method developed by R. C. Reynolds and J. Hower to include those sedimentary materials which are dominated by the presence of discrete illite, are low in illite/smectite, and, as such, have been described previously only by an “illite crystallinity index.”

Zeolites having the structures of phillipsite, merlinoite, and gobbinsite were synthesized from clear solutions at 80°C in the system Na2O-K2O-Al2O3-SiO2-H2O and their morphologies, cell parameters, and compositions determined. At 3.5 M silica concentration, the formation of merlinoite (synthetic zeolite W) is favored over the formation of phillipsite (synthetic zeolite ZK-19) by solution conditions of high pH (> 13.6) and low Na/(Na + K) ratios (<0.5).

Using the information obtained from the synthesis experiments, the presence of merlinoite was predicted in sediments from Searles Lake, a saline, alkaline lake in California with ideal physiochemical conditions for its formation. Merlinoite was subsequently discovered to occur in tuffaceous sediments as part of an authigenic silicate zonation pattern from phillipsite → phillipsite + merlinoite → merlinoite → K-feldspar with increasing depth. Because of the close similarities in the physical properties of phillipsite and merlinoite, merlinoite may be much more common as an authigenic mineral than is currently realized.

Long-range ordering of tetrahedral cations in micas is favored by phengitic compositions, by the 3T stacking sequence of layers, and by tetrahedral Si:Al ratios near 1:1. Phengites of the 1M, 2M1, and 2M2 polytypes are said to show partial ordering of tetrahedral cations, although the amounts of tetrahedral substitutions are small and the accuracies of determination are not as large as desired. The 3T structures of muscovite, paragonite, lepidolite, and protolithionite show tetrahedral ordering, as do the 2M1 brittle micas margarite and an intermediate between margarite and bityite. Muscovite-3T and margarite-2M1 are also slightly phengitic relative to their ideal compositions. Examples of octahedral cation ordering in micas are more abundant and are to be expected when cations of different size and charge are present. Octahedron M(1) with its OH,F groups in the trans orientation tends to be larger than the mean of the two cis octahedra as a result of the ordering of cations and vacancies. In some samples ordering has reduced the true symmetry to a subgroup of that of the ideal space group. If ordering in subgroup symmetry results in ordered patterns of different geometries but similar energies in very small domains, the average over all unit cells may simulate long-range disorder.

Chemical activity diagrarns, prepared to illustrate the properties expected if mixed-layer mont-morillonite/illite is regarded as a solid solution, are compared to those derived from a treatment of these materials as a mixture of two phases. If the system is a solid solution, the coexisting aqueous solution should range from higher dissolved silica contents in the presence of kaolinite and a montmorillonite end member to lower dissolved silica in the presence of kaolinite and an illitic end member. Silica concentration in the aqueous solution might vary by a factor of as much as six. If the system is two phase, the silica content of a solution in equilibrium with kaolinite and both phases would be fixed at a given T and P, as would a solution equilibrated with both phases and K-feldspar. In the absence of a third phase, silica in equilibrium with both phases should be nearly constant, but increase with increasing ratio of K+/H+ in solution. Available data on coexisting aqueous solutions apparently are more nearly consistent with two phases than with a solid solution.

Iddingsite rimming olivine in a basanite from the Limberg, Germany, is composed of saponite and goethite. Transmission electron microscopy of ion-thinned, oriented crystals suggests a two-stage alteration process. At first, the olivine breaks into a mosaic of 50-Å diameter {110} bounded needle-shaped domains which change to a metastable hexagonal phase having a = 3.1 Å and c = 4.6 Å, probably of close-packed, metal-oxygen octahedra. This reaction opens solution channels in the olivine which are detectable from about 20-Å diameter and are parallel to the olivine y-axis. Laths of smectite, one or two layers thick, 20 Å wide, and as much as 100 Å long parallel to their y-axis nucleate from the metastable phase and begin to fill in the solution channels. The laths orient with smectite (001) parallel to olivine (100). As the channels widen, prismatic {110} goethite crystals form directly from the metastable hexagonal phase. This first stage thus provides heterogeneous nuclei of smectite and goethite, formed epitactically and perhaps topotactically from a metastable intermediary.

In a second stage,these nuclei enlarge by deposition from solution as water migrates readily through the solution channels. A reduction in total volume allows smectite veins to form, misoriented with respect to the olivine. The reaction conserves iron, requires the addition of aluminum and water, and releases magnesium and silicon. Electron microprobe analyses of the iddingsite indicate that the smectite is saponite.

A rapid and simple test to distinguish halloysite from kaolinite in mineral mixtures has been developed based on differences in the rate and extent of formamide intercalation. With halloysite, complex formation was both rapid (<1 hr) and complete, whereas no significant intercalation occurred with kaolinite until at least 4 hr after contact with formamide, and then the process may not have been complete. Unheated halloysite formed complete complexes with formamide regardless of the interlayer hydration state of the mineral. The test, however, was inconclusive for halloysite that had been oven-dried at 110°C, although some water may still have been present in the interlayer space. The extent of formamide intercalation by kaolinite was likely influenced by sample crystallinity, and the rate of complex formation was enhanced by the addition of up to 10% v/v water to the system. Nevertheless, the formamide test unambiguously differentiated halloysite from kaolinite. N-methylformamide, which yields complexes with a basal spacing of 10.9 Å, could be substituted for formamide (basal spacing = 10.4 Å) for samples containing appreciable amounts of illite-mica.

The effect of Fe oxidation state on the surface charge (CEC) and solubility of smectites were studied using the <2-μm, Na+-saturated fraction of an Upton, Wyoming; a Czechoslovakian; and a New Zealand montmorillonite; and a Garfield, Washington, nontronite. The reduction of structural Fe3+ in the octahedral sheet of each clay produced a net increase in the negative surface charge of the clay. The observed cation-exchange capacities deviated from the linear relationship predicted by charge-deficit calculations, assuming changes only in the Fe2+/Fe3+ ratio, and reversibly followed Fe reduction according to a 2nd-degree polynomial function. The deviations suggest reversible changes in mineral structure and composition during Fe reduction.

These clays were susceptible to partial dissolution in citrate bicarbonate (CB) and citrate-bicarbonate-dithionite (CBD) solutions. Small amounts of Fe and Si dissolved as a result of Fe reduction in CBD, but affected <1% of the total clay mass except for the Czechoslovakian clay in which 2% of the clay dissolved. Although slightly more Fe dissolved than Si, no change in surface charge was noted. Almost no dissolution of these elements was detected in CB solution. In contrast, significant Al was detected in the CB solution, suggesting a heterogeneous dissolution mechanism. The CEC, however, was unchanged by the CB treatment. These results may be explained by the adsorption of hydrogen ions into the vacated Al3+ sites in the mineral structure. Dissolution seems to have been independent of the effects of Fe oxidation state on surface charge.

The intercalation of formamide, potassium acetate, and hydrazine by halloysite and/or ka-olinite-rich samples, with and without subsequent displacement of the interlayer species by water or glycerol/water, has been investigated. Halloysite, as such, or in mixtures with kaolinite is completely expanded by all the treatments used, thereby enabling halloysite concentrations to be determined from the basal X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) peak ratios of the appropriate complexes. The values so obtained are usually proportional to the abundance of tubes, laths, and spherules in the transmission electron micrographs of the samples. The analysis of kaolin samples (halloysite plus kaolinite) by intercalation methods is less straight forward because a proportion of the kaolinite component in the system may not expand, even after lengthy (≥ 18 days) contact of the sample with the intercalating agent. Only prolonged immersion in hydrazine produces complete or nearly complete expansion of this component. When allowance is made for the presence of non-clay mineral components, kaolin-mineral percentages estimated from XRD peak intensity ratios of the hydrazine complexes generally agree with values derived from differential thermal analysis to within ±10%. Kaolinite in mixtures with halloysite cannot be directly determined by intercalation procedures inasmuch as treatments which result in complex formation with kaolinite also expand halloysite. In such systems, kaolinite can be estimated by difference between the concentration of kaolin minerals and halloysite.

The formation of fine-grained magnetite (~0.1 μm) at pH 7 and 25°C from aeration of Fe(II) chloride solutions is presented. The magnetite converted at 105°C to maghemite with poorly developed superstructure lines. Under the experimental conditions employed, as the initial [Cl]/[Fe] ratio was increased from the stoichiometric value of 2, the final product contained increasing amounts of lepidocrocite. The degree of crystallinity of this phase, as measured by the width at half height of the 020 X-ray diffraction peak, also increased with this ratio. The hydrolysis rate (base consumption to maintain pH) showed a plateau whose position and extent changed with the initial [Cl]/[Fe] ratio. Through this plateau region the Eh decreased to a minimum value the position of which was directly related to the [Cl]/[Fe] value. The formation of lepidocrocite rather than magnetite is likely due to the high [Cl] where there would be increased difficulty for neighboring OH to condense and eliminate H2O. The formation of Fe-O-Fe bonds in this condensation would be impeded by Cl substitution for OH either in the first formed green rust stage or during its oxidation.

To understand and predict the effects of a thermal pulse induced by a radioactive waste repository on clinoptilolite-bearing rocks, the lattice parameters of 6 natural and 3 cation-exchanged (Ca, K, Na) clinoptilolites were studied as a function of temperature. The samples were examined at room temperature, under vacuum, and at 50°C increments to 300°C using a high-temperature X-ray powder diffractometer. The unit cell of all samples decreased in volume between 20° and 300°C Na-saturated clinoptilolite underwent the greatest volume decrease (8.4%) and K-saturated clinoptilolite the smallest (1.6%), of the clinoptilolites studied. The volume decrease for the Ca-saturated clinoptilolite was 3.6%. The highest percentage decrease for each sample was along the b axis, generally 80–90% of the total volume decrease. The change in the a axis was the smallest and was usually <5%, although 26.5% of the contraction of the Na-exchanged clinoptilolite was along a. The bulk of the volume contraction of many samples occurred on evacuation at room temperature, demonstrating that the observed changes were due to water loss and not to temperature-induced structural changes. Low-angle scattering was significantly reduced upon evacuation for every sample, and the 110 reflection of clinoptilolite at 7.45°2θ became obvious, whereas it was not in the untreated samples.

These data show that the effects of heating on the unit-cell volume of clinoptilolite depend strongly on the exchangeable cation content. Significant reductions in the unit-cell volumes of natural, mixed Na-K-Ca clinoptilolites could take place in rocks in a repository environment, particularly if the clinoptilolites occurred in unsaturated, dehydrated rock. The unit-cell volumes of clinoptilolites in partially saturated rocks at temperatures below 100°C, however, should not decrease significantly.

The reactions of the tris(acetylacetonato)silicone(IV) cation (Si(acac)3+) with Na+-, Mg2+-, and Co2+-exchange forms of hectorite and montmorillonite have been investigated to understand better the formation process of clays pillared by silicic acid. In acetone as the solvating medium, Si(acac)3+ binds to the Na+- and Mg2+-clays with the desorption of only a small fraction (~5%) of the initial exchange cation, suggesting that the complex binds as the ion pair [Si(acac)3+][Cl−]. With the Co2+-clays, however, the exchange cation is desorbed quantitatively, and Si(acac)3+ binding is accompanied by the formation of an acetone-solvated CoCl2 solution complex which helps to drive the ion-exchange reaction. Thus, Co2+-smectites react with Si(acac)3+ in acetone to produce homoionic Si(acac)3+ intercalates, whereas Na+-and Mg2+-smectites produce mixed-ion intercalates. The interlayer hydrolysis of Si(acac)3+ to silicic acid in the homoionic Si(acac)3+- and mixed-ion Na+/Si(acac)3+- and Mg2+/Si(acac)3+-exchange forms of montmorillonite films is diffusion controlled. In water as the solvating medium, the reaction of Si(acac)3+ with Mg2+- or Co2+-montmorillonite results in the desorption of the exchange cations on a time scale which is comparable to that observed for the solution hydrolysis of Si(acac)3+. Thus, the precipitation of silicic acid from aqueous solution competes strongly with the formation of interlayer silicic acid. With aqueous Na+-montmorillonite dispersions, however, a significant fraction of the exchange cations desorbed rapidly upon Si(acac)3+ binding, and the formation of interlayer silicic acid is favored over the precipitation of Si(OH)4.

The ability of a high surface-area gibbsite to adsorb Cu2+ was studied using a Cu2+ ion-selective electrode, electron spin resonance, infrared spectroscopy, and electron microscopy. The gibbsite chemi-sorbed small amounts of monomelic Cu2+ (<0.5 mmole/100 g) which was oriented with its z-axis perpendicular to the (001) plane of the mineral. The proposed chemisorption sites are at gibbsite crystal “steps” observed by electron microscopy. Although Cu2+ adsorption on gibbsite as a function of pH was largely reversible, exposure of the chemisorbed Cu2+ to NH3 did not result in desorption from the surface despite the displacement of several OH− or H2O ligands by NH3. The results indicate that at least one Cu-O-Al bond is formed in the process of chemisorption.

At pH > 5, the gibbsite appeared to promote the hydrolysis and polymerization of Cu2+, with further adsorption at the surfaces. Infrared spectroscopy revealed no effect of the adsorption on the (001) surface hydroxyl groups, although the anisotropic diffusion of protons in the gibbsite structure was verified from deuteration studies.

Three montmorillonites and a nontronite were reduced by sodium dithionite to obtain different amounts of Fe2+ in their octahedral sites. The mass ratio of water to clay, mw/mc was determined as a function of Fe2+ at several values of the swelling pressure, π. The value mwmc decreased markedly with increasing Fe2+ at each value of π for each clay. Moreover, curves of π vs. mwmc for the different clays were displaced downwards as Fe2+ increased. A straight line was obtained when In(π + 1) was plotted against 1/(mw/mc) however, at some oxidation states of three of the samples this line exhibited a sharp break at a specific value of 1/(w/mc. The slope of the line decreased for each clay as Fe2+ increased, and an increase in Fe2+ was accompanied by an increase in the cation exchange capacity. These observations are thought to be due to a collapse or partial collapse of the superimposed clay layers resulting from the increase in cation-exchange capacity.

Diffractograms of lepidocrocites formed from the oxidation of Fe(II) chloride solutions at pH 7 and 25°C showed differential line broadening with (0k0) reflections being much sharper than (hk0) or (hkl). As the initial [Cl]/[Fe] ratio was increased from 2, crystallinity increased in all axial directions, as defined by the width at half height of diffraction peaks. At [Cl]/[Fe] ratios greater than ~8, the crystallinity did not increase further, and for reflections involving the a-axis direction, it appeared to decrease. Increased [Cl]/[Fe] ratios changed the rate of the oxidation/hydrolysis reactions. These variations reflect changes in the stability and/or composition of the intermediate green rust phase, (Fe(II)Fe(III) hydroxychloride) in the high [Cl] environment. The influence of the [Cl]/[Fe] ratio was related to the experimental conditions employed, especially where they influenced the rate of oxidation.

Interaction of La3+- and Ce3+-exchanged hectorites with oligomeric hydroxy-Al cations results in the formation of cross-linked hectorites possessing moderately high surface areas (~ 220–280 m2/g) and high thermal stability. The basal spacings of these products were generally in the range 17.0–18.0 A, the exact d(001) value depending on the age of the hydroxy-Al oligomeric solution and on the pH of the starting hectorite dispersion. Interaction of Li- or Ce-fluorhectorite with hydroxy-Al oligocations produced the corresponding cross-linked fluorhectorites, which showed markedly higher basal spacings (18.2–20.0 Å for air-dried samples), surface areas (~300–380 m2/g), and thermal stability, as compared with those of the cross-linked hectorites. The cross-linking agent applied in the synthesis of the hydroxy-Al hectorite and fluorhectorite products consisted of a solution of hydroxy-Al oligomers aged for periods of 7 to 27 days. A constant ratio of 2.0 mmole Al/g of smectite was used in all preparations. The high basal spacings and porosity of the newly synthesized products are consistent with a structure similar to that previously proposed for cross-linked hydroxy-Al montmorillonite.

A procedure leading to the systematic derivation of all maximum-degree-of-order (MDO) polytypes in the three mica families, based on the order-disorder (OD) interpretation of mica structures, has been developed. There are 6 non-equivalent (8 non-congruent) homo-octahedral, 14 (22) mesooctahedral, and 36 (60) hetero-octahedral MDO mica polytypes. The ideal ditrigonalization of tetrahedral sheets leads to a splitting of the polytypes in any mica family into two subfamilies with octahedral and trigonal prismatic coordination of the interlayer cations, respectively.

A kaolinite-rich bed (tonstein) and an associated bentonite in the upper part of Yegua Formation at College Station, east-central Texas, were formed by in situ weathering processes in a late Eocene swamp. X-ray powder diffraction, infrared spectroscopy, petrographic studies, and scanning and transmission electron microscopy not only show that dioctahedral smectite and coarsely crystalline kaolinite are the dominant minerals in the bentonite and tonstein, respectively, but that cryptocrystalline halloysite and kaolinite are localized along the weathering front (transitional zone) between the tonstein and the bentonite. As weathering progressed, the cryptocrystalline minerals gradually recrystallized to yield the coarse books and vermicular growths of kaolinite characteristic of the tonstein.

Small amounts of cristobalite, sanidine, and euhedral zircon crystals with liquid or gaseous inclusions accord with the formation of the bentonite by alteration of volcanic ash. Clinoptilolite in the lignitic layer and sandstone below the bentonite probably formed from ions that were released during alteration of the volcanic materials to smectite, but clinoptilolite in the tonstein and overlying strata appear to have formed after kaolinization of the bentonite.

As part of a laboratory study of the hydrothermal alteration of kimberlite, a mass balance procedure has been developed for estimating the relative proportions of synthetic phyllosilicate phases— chlorite, vermiculite, smectite, kaolinite and serpentine—present in reaction products. The procedure is based on a combination of X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) measurements (for phase identification), atomic absorption determinations (for total Si, Al, Fe, and Mg) and published analyses of clay minerals (for stoichiometric deductions). It centers on the computer inversion of a 4 × 4 matrix form of four simultaneous equations representing the mass balance of Si, Al, Fe, and Mg in four chosen minerals and incorporates a systematic routine for selecting from all possible permutations of high and low estimates of the mineral chemical analyses acceptable sets of product stoichiometries and phase proportions consistent with the total metal analyses. To minimize uncertainties and computing time, the program takes account of elemental relationships and water mass balances associated with phyllosilicates. It also accommodates data relevant to poorly crystalline phases for which a range of theoretical type-analyses modeled on aluminum oxyhydroxides and 9–11-Å, 2:1 layered aluminosilicates are employed.

The procedure produces reliable trends in phase proportions consistent with the intensities of characteristic XRD peaks of clay minerals present in the analyzed mixture; for example, increases in estimated kaolinite proportions correspond with larger 7-Å (and other) peaks in analyzed samples. A precision of 7–25% has been routinely achievable.

Hydrated kaolinite (d(001) = 10 Å) can be synthesized by mild heating of a kaolinite-organic suspension, allowing time for the clay to be intercalated by the organic solvent, and then dissolving a fluoride salt in the liquid. After mild heating of the suspension, the salt and organic solvent are removed by repeated water washings. The kaolinite retains interlayer water in the form of a 10-Å kaolinite hydrate. The influence of the intercalating agent, type of salt, concentration of salt, and the time of treatment on the synthesis of 10-Å hydrate was examined for several kaolinites. The most effective salt is NH4F; much smaller yields were obtained using KF and RbF. Not all organic molecules gave high yields of the hydrate; dimethyl sulfoxide, formamide, and hydrazine worked well but N-methyl formamide did not. The reaction between clay and salt resulted in the replacement of some hydroxyls by fluoride. This replacement was rapid; after 1 min of fluoride treatment a substantial yield of hydrate was obtained. The intercalation step separated the layers and also disordered the kaolinite, facilitating the F for OH replacement at or near crystallite edges. This replacement weakens the interlayer bonding at the edges and thereby reduces the possibility of layer collapse and attendant dehydration.

A material resembling what has been described in the literature as hisingerite has been identified in the joints of Cenozoic grey basalt near Geelong, Victoria. The material gives an X-ray powder diffraction pattern with weak broad peaks at 4.49, 2.58, and 1.53 Å and a chemical analysis of SiO2 = 34.2, TiO2 = 0.28, A12O3 = 4.16, Fe2O3 = 17.10, FeO = 3.52, MnO = 0.04, MgO = 5.19, CaO = 0.68, Na2O = 0.26, P2O5 = 0.05, H2O+ = 5.3, H2O− = 25.4, total = 96.18% (3.82% siderite impurity). Assuming a smectite model with 44 negative charges per unit cell, the chemical composition gives a unit-cell formula with −1.14 charges, corresponding to a cation-exchange capacity (CEC) of 135 meq/100 g. The same unit-cell charge is obtained when the structural formula is calculated on the basis of (Si + Al) = 8. The measured CEC of 60 meq/100 g indicates that the smectite structure may not apply to this hisingerite-material, and that in the alternative structure, all of the Al atoms may not be in the tetrahedral positions. Although the specific surface area of this material is between 662 and 758 m2/g (comparable to that of smectite), the infrared spectra do not show the characteristic OH vibrations, and the thermal analysis curves lack the dehydroxylation peak at 550–600°C expected for a smectite. Transmission electron microscopy shows indications of a layer structure and apparently hollow spherical bodies with ‘onion’ structure of 140 to 200 Å internal diameter, which might represent the sites of the large amounts of water contained by the material. The mode of occurrence and the nature of the hisingerite-material suggest precipitation from solution at relatively low temperatures.