Mechanochemical Adsorption of Phenol by Tot Swelling Clay Minerals

The mechanochemical adsorption of phenol by laponite, saponite, montmorillonite, beidellite and vermiculite was studied by IR and X-ray spectroscopy. Mixtures containing phenol and clay in the ratio of 6:10 were manually ground by a mortar and pestle for 1,3,5 and 10 min and the ground mixtures were investigated. Depending on the basicity of the clay mineral and the time of grinding, two different associations between interlay er cations, water and phenol were identified. In these associations phenol can act either as a proton acceptor or donor (Configurations I and II, respectively). The phenol is more acidic than water and in most cases phenol acts as a proton donor. With montmorillonite and beidellite phenol acts as a proton acceptor. In this association the aromatic ring forms π bonds with atoms of the oxygen planes of the tetrahedral sheets which donate electrons to the anti-bonding π orbitals of the phenol.