One- and two-dimensional solid-state magic angle spinning NMR studies on the hydration process of layered sodium disilicate SKS-6

Three different kinds of silanols, which include isolated silanol, silanol I (with the hydroxyl proton bonded to an oxygen atom in the adjacent layer) and silanol II (with the hydroxyl proton bonded to the non-bridging oxygen at the same silicon atom), are generated during the hydration process of SKS-6 (δ-Na₂Si₂O₅). ¹H–¹H nuclear Overhauser enhancement spectroscopy reveals that the proton of silanol I has an effective chemical exchange or spin diffusion with the proton of hydrogen-bonded water, while the proton of silanol II is likely far away from the other proton-containing species. ²⁹Si magic angle spinning, ¹H→²⁹Si CP/MAS NMR and ¹H–²⁹Si phase-modulated Lee–Goldburg decoupled correlation experiments demonstrate that the local environments of the silicon sites in the final hydrated sample are mainly composed of Q² [(SiO)₂Si(OH)O⁻Na⁺], Q³ [(SiO)₃Si(OH) and (SiO)₃SiO⁻Na⁺] and Q⁴ [Si(OSi)₄] groups.