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Clay Composites: Physicochemical Characterization

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Clay Composites

Part of the book series: Advances in Material Research and Technology ((AMRT))

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Abstract

Clay compounds have been used by human societies since time immemorial, because they are abundant in nature, smaller than 4 microns, adherent, plastic, malleable, have ion exchange capacity and affinity with water. Due to their physical and chemical properties, they are used in agriculture, livestock, industry, commerce, tourism and the environment for the development of services and products such as bricks, crockery, paints, pharmaceuticals, agricultural inputs and natural filters. The clay composition of an environment depends on the rock that gave rise to it, weathering and pedogenesis, with the following groups standing out: kaolinite-serpentine, talc-pyrophyllite, mica, vermiculite, smectite, chlorite and sepiolite-palygorskite. Each of these groups has specific physicochemical properties, which will direct them to certain uses. Proper use requires prior characterization, so in this chapter we will discuss the main types of clay compounds, their structure, formation, occurrence, mineralogical and physicochemical characteristics and their environmental importance.

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Acknowledgements

In Memoriam, to professors Ilson Guimarães Carvalho, Lucedino Paixão Ribeiro and Tersandro Paz do Rego Monteiro, Brazilian geoscientists who taught so much about clay minerals and their environmental importance. The authors thank Leandro Fonseca Carvalho and biologist Mr. Jackson M. Ministro for his help with figures. The authors also thank Prof. MSc. Gileno Santos Moreira for kindly providing photomicrographs of the biotite.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Academic Department, Federal Institute Baiano (IF BAIANO), Santa Inês, Bahia, Brazil

    Fábio Carvalho Nunes

  2. Department of Biology, State University of Alagoas, Santana Do Ipanema, Alagoas, Brazil

    Cláudia Cseko Nolasco de Carvalho

  3. State University of Santa Cruz (UESC), Ilhéus, Bahia, Brazil

    Lander de Jesus Alves

  4. School of Life Sciences, University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad, India

    Majeti Narasimha Vara Prasad

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  1. Fábio Carvalho Nunes
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  2. Cláudia Cseko Nolasco de Carvalho
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  3. Lander de Jesus Alves
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  4. Majeti Narasimha Vara Prasad
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Correspondence to Fábio Carvalho Nunes .

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  1. Ecosphere Resilience Research Center, Faculty of Applied Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Nugegoda, Sri Lanka

    Meththika Vithanage

  2. Department of Physics and Chemistry, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy

    Giuseppe Lazzara

  3. Instrument Center, Faculty of Applied Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Nugegoda, Sri Lanka

    Anushka Upamali Rajapaksha

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Nunes, F.C., de Carvalho, C.C.N., de Jesus Alves, L., Prasad, M.N.V. (2023). Clay Composites: Physicochemical Characterization. In: Vithanage, M., Lazzara, G., Rajapaksha, A.U. (eds) Clay Composites. Advances in Material Research and Technology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-2544-5_2

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