Particle shape in thixotropic aluminium and thorium molybdates gels

Summary Electron microscope examination of thixotropic aluminium and thorium molybdate gels shows that one hour after formation they are constituted by short fibrils of small axial ratio. The fibrils of the aluminium molybdate gels, with ageing at room temperature or with boiling, increase in diameter and length; the fibrous shape of the particles is maintained after two and a half years of ageing; all fibrils are crystalline by electron diffraction. The fibrils of the thorium molybdate gels, except in the gels containing hydrochloric acid, change with ageing at room temperature or with boiling, into plates of hexagonal, elliptical or rectangular profile; the fibrils and plates are crystalline and have the same electron diffraction pattern as the fibrils.This work was aided, in part, by grants from Conselho Nacional de Pesquisas and the Rockefeller Foundation.