Dry grinding of Ca and octadecyltrimethylammonium montmorillonite

Structural changes in Ca and octadecyltrimethylammonium (ODTMA) montmorillonite induced by dry grinding in a high-energy planetary ball mill were investigated by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) analysis, infrared (IR) spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The organomontmorillonite is more resistant toward mechanical destruction than the Ca form. Both XRD and IR analyses indicate a complete breakdown of the mineral layers after 5 min of grinding of Ca-JP. The XRD pattern of the ODTMA clay shows disappearance of the layer ordering along the c axis after 40 min of grinding, while persistence of the layered structure for all tested samples is proven by the IR spectroscopy. The grinding process affects chemical bonds in the OH, SiOAl, and SiOSi groups of montmorillonite; however, no changes are observed for CH bonds of the organocations. In contrast to the Ca form, all absorption bands typical for montmorillonite appear in the IR spectrum of the ODTMA montmorillonite even after 40 min of grinding. The majority of the bands are undetectable in the spectrum of Ca montmorillonite ground for 5 min. Amorphization of the montmorillonite caused by an intense grinding process is markedly slower after replacing the inorganic cations with the long-chain alkylammonium cations.