Effect of Sonication on Particle-Size Distribution in Natural Muscovite and Biotite

Abstract

The effects of ultrasound treatment on the mean particle size, crystal structure, crystallite dimensions and specific surface area of natural muscovite and biotite samples have been investigated. Sonication of macroscopic flakes of muscovite and biotite produced a drastic particle-size reduction. The conditions for the preparation of micron and submicron-sized muscovite and biotite particles of narrow particle-size distribution by sonochemistry are described. The effect of sonication on particle-size reduction is more significant for muscovite than for biotite. Thus, for long sonication times (100 h), submicron and micron particles are predominant in muscovite and biotite, respectively. The resulting materials are crystalline, as assayed by X-ray diffraction, only broadening of the diffraction lines due to size-reduction was observed. Nuclear magnetic resonance studies revealed that the coordination of Al and Si was not modified by the treatment. Chemical analysis showed that the composition of the sample was not affected by the sonication except for a small contamination by Ti from the tip cup of the sonication instrument.

Moving Excitations in Cation Lattices

“…The layers are composed of a layer of silicate octahedra between two layers of silicate tetrahedra sharing oxygen atoms. About one of four tetrahedral Si 4+ is replaced by Al +3 leading to a net negative charge, which is compensated by a layer of K + cations joined feebly the silicate sheets [9]. The height of the silicate layers is about 7Å, and that of an interlayer is 3.36Å, where the K + ions are sitting.…”

Supersonic Kinks in Coulomb Lattices

“…Muscovite is a mica in which a charged layer results from the isomorphic substitution of silicon by aluminium in the tetrahedral sheet [1]. The structure of muscovite is depicted at the left of Fig.…”

Letting Corrosion Work for You: Novel Pathways to Additive Manufacturing and Nanomaterial Synthesis Using Electrochemically‐Driven Powder Consolidation

“…However, unlike the agglomeration behavior of Fe(OH) 3 and AlOOH, the Pb agglomerates produced in this study could not be broken-up by physical agitation. In fact, it was observed that the agglomeration process intensified during sonication, a process commonly used to reduce agglomeration of particles in suspensions, [9] indicating a more complex consolidation mechanism.…”