Hydrothermal synthesis of nano-kaolinite from K-feldspar

Development of sustainable routes for the synthesis of kaolinite in nano-scale (nano-kaolinite) is very significant for producing high quality kaolinite of paper-coating grade in kaolin industry. Duplicating chemical weathering processes in nature, two routes were developed and compared for the synthesis of nano-kaolinite from K-feldspar. Kaolinite of uniform plate-like morphology with thickness of around 14 nm was obtained in this study. Both synthesis routes may lead to the comprehensive utilization of K-feldspar for the synthesis of pure kaolinite for not only high quality paper-coatings but also medical and other uses.