IR spectroscopy studies of zeolites in geopolymeric materials derived from kaolinite

Alkali-activation treatment of the metakaolin yielded bulk materials with different amounts and types of zeolite, which reveal the IR spectra of received materials. With proper selection of the initial conditions (temperature and composition), it is possible to obtain a solid material containing zeolite phase such as zeolite X, zeolite A or sodalite. The presence of zeolite phase was confirmed by the measurement of spectra in the middle infrared. In particular in pseudolattice range of the spectra, i.e. 800-400 cm−1, there are bands associated with the ring vibrations, which are characteristic for secondary building units (SBU) occurred in zeolite structure. IR spectroscopy is also useful in the studies of resulting amorphous phase structure.