COMPOSITION, STRUCTURE AND TEXTURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF DOMESTIC ACID ACTIVATED BENTONITE

Abstract

Bentonites are aluminosilicate minerals which, due to their porosity, layered structure and composition have a wide application. Structural and textural characteristics of bentonite may be improved by different modification procedures. The aim of this study was to investigate compositional, structural and textural characteristics of domestic bentonite in place Gerzovo, before and after the activation with sulfuric acid. These characteristics were investigated by analytical methods, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and the method of low-temperature nitrogen adsorption (BET). Characteristics of acid-activated bentonite were compared with the characteristics of commercial active clay. The obtained results showed that the activation of bentonite with sulfuric acid leads to a significant improvement in structural and textural characteristics. Using these results it can be assumed that this bentonite will have good adsorption characteristics and can serve as an alternative in comparison with imported commercial aluminosilicate-based adsorbents.