N2-BET specific surface area of bentonites

The specific surface areas (SSAN2BET) of 36 different bentonites had larger values for Ca2+/Mg2+ bentonites than for Na+ bentonites. This trend could not be explained by the different d(0 0 1) values nor by the different microstructures. The investigation of Cu-triene-exchanged smectites, which on drying at 105 °C still had a d(0 0 1) value accounting for approximately 13 Å, proved that the SSAN2BET of low-charged smectites increased more than that of high-charged smectites. This could be explained by: (i) more space between the permanent charge sites in the case of low-charged smectites and (ii) the fact that the layers of Cu-triene smectites do not collapse at 105 °C. In contrast the SSAN2BET of Ca2+-exchanged bentonites could not be related to the layer charge density (LCD) as in the case of the Cu-triene-exchanged bentonites which is probably due to the varying number of collapsed layers. In conclusion, the SSAN2BET of bentonites which is known to be largely variable is probably determined by microporosity resulting from the quasi-crystalline overlap region and accessible areas of the interlayer. The number of layers per stack and the microstructure are supposed to play a subordinate role. The larger SSAN2BET of Ca/Mg bentonites compared to Na bentonites probably can be explained by the larger space between the charges in the case of the presence of divalent cations.

The SSAN2BET of bentonites was proven to depend on accessible regions of the interlayer (EIA) and hence depends both on the layer charge density and on the valence of the counterion.Figure optionsDownload high-quality image (121 K)Download as PowerPoint slide