Surface acid–base properties and hydration/dehydration mechanisms of aluminum (hydr)oxides

In this paper, surface physiochemical properties of three typical aluminas, γ-Al(OH)3, γ-Al2O3, and α-Al2O3, were investigated by means of XRD, SEM, TEM, BET surface area, TG/DTA, and potentiometric titration techniques. Based on the titration data, surface protonation and deprotonation constants were determined using the constant capacitance model (CCM). The emphasis of this research was laid on the comparison of the crystal structure, surface hydration/dehydration and acid–base properties of these three typical alumina minerals. The calculation results revealed that the surface acidity of the aluminas is in the order of α-Al2O3>γ-Al(OH)3>γ-Al2O3α-Al2O3>γ-Al(OH)3>γ-Al2O3 after being hydrated for 1 h. The correlation between the hydration/dehydration mechanisms of alumina and its acid/base properties is discussed.

Graphical abstractThe surface hydration process of α-Al2O3 may be regarded as a reversible process of gibbsite dehydration. At the last stage of the hydration the gibbsite surface may form.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide