Clays are increasingly becoming a major problem in the mining, extraction and value-adding processes for a wide range of commodity raw materials. Clays can impact negatively on virtually every unit process within the mining and minerals processing sector, having long-term environmental implications that go well beyond the lifetime of the mining operation. This book is the first to compile, explain and evaluate the effects of clays in the mineral processing value chain, from mining to minerals processing, and finally, tailings disposal. Focusing on topics from the chemistry and rheology of clays to their detection and dissolution behaviour, this book provides comprehensive coverage of the effects on processes such as settling, preg-robing, flotation and comminution. It is an excellent reference for professional mineralogists and geologists, industrial engineers, and researchers interested in clays and clay minerals.

Clays are increasingly becoming a major problem in the mining, extraction and value-adding processes for a wide range of commodity raw materials. Clays can impact negatively on virtually every unit process within the mining and minerals processing sector, having long-term environmental implications that go well beyond the lifetime of the mining operation. This book is the first to compile, explain and evaluate the effects of clays in the mineral processing value chain, from mining to minerals processing, and finally, tailings disposal. Focusing on topics from the chemistry and rheology of clays to their detection and dissolution behaviour, this book provides comprehensive coverage of the effects on processes such as settling, preg-robing, flotation and comminution. It is an excellent reference for professional mineralogists and geologists, industrial engineers, and researchers interested in clays and clay minerals.

This book is an attempt to provide a comprehensive and coherent description of three widely separated aspects of clays: the science of clays; the industrial uses of clays; and the role of clays in the environment. Most of the existing literature lacks such an integrated study and this work endeavours to fill that gap. An exhaustive account of the science of clays is presented in Part I of the book, which includes the classification, origin and evolution, composition and internal structure, chemical and physical properties of clays; soil mechanics; and analytical techniques for determining clay constituents. Part II provides a comprehensive description of the applications of clays and their derivatives in various industries, while Part III describes the role of clays in the environment; the pollution caused by clay minerals; and the application of clays in order to prevent environmental hazards. A principal feature of the book is its explanation of how the structure and composition of particular clay types facilitate their specific industrial or environmental applications, thus describing the interrelationship between three widely varying aspects of clay. A number of thought-provoking questions are raised at the end of the work in order to leave readers with a better insight in this regard.

Introduction; Structure and properties of the Clay Minerals; Clays in ceramic products; Clays in foundry molding sands; Clay mineralogy in relation to the engineering properties of clay materials; Clays in the discovery and recovery of petroleum; Clays in refining and preparation of organic materials; Clays in miscellaneous uses.

This volume is the edited proceedings of a conference seeking to clarify the possible role of clays in the origin of life on Earth. At the heart of the problem of the origin of life lie fundamental questions such as: What kind of properties is a model of a primitive living system required to exhibit and what would its most plausible chemical and molecular makeup be? Answers to these questions have traditionally been sought in terms of properties that are held to be common to all contemporary organisms. However, there are a number of different ideas both on the nature and on the evolutionary priority of 'common vital properties', notably those based on protoplasmic, biochemical and genetic theories of life. This is therefore the first area for consideration in this volume and the contributors then examine to what extent the properties of clay match those required by the substance which acted as the template for life.

Introduction to Clay Minerals is designed to give a detailed, concise and clear introduction to clay mineralogy. Using the information presented here, one should be able to understand clays and their mineralogy, their uses and importance in modern life.

Modified Clay and Zeolite Nanocomposite Materials: Environmental and Pharmaceutical Applications retraces the most important knowledge gaps that the scientific community is facing, including a drawback of real-world applications. This valuable resource explores the novel applications of this group of nanomaterials that can be suitably surface-modified to obtain properties that can be applied in environmental and pharmaceutical fields. For example, modification with surfactants has given new motivation to the study of these materials by producing an inversion in the ion exchange behavior from cationic to anionic. This strategy has paved the way for new uses highlighted in this timely resource. - Explores the combination of both minerals (clay and zeolite) together, with their application in two broad areas of emerging research - Explains better utilization and applications for modified clay and zeolite through detailed comparative studies - Consolidates information on the modification and tuning of clay and zeolite materials for novelty applications - Helps users in the selection of materials, surface features, and other functionalization for diverse applications

Clay–Polymer Nanocomposites is a complete summary of the existing knowledge on this topic, from the basic concepts of synthesis and design to their applications in timely topics such as high-performance composites, environment, and energy issues. This book covers many aspects of synthesis such as in- situ polymerization within the interlamellar spacing of the clays or by reaction of pristine or pre-modified clays with reactive polymers and prepolymers. Indeed, nanocomposites can be prepared at industrial scale by melt mixing. Regardless the synthesis method, much is said in this book about the importance of theclay pre-modification step, which is demonstrated to be effective, on many occasions, in obtaining exfoliated nanocomposites. Clay–Polymer Nanocomposites reports the background to numerous characterization methods including solid state NMR, neutron scattering, diffraction and vibrational techniques as well as surface analytical methods, namely XPS, inverse gas chromatography and nitrogen adsorption to probe surface composition, wetting and textural/structural properties. Although not described in dedicated chapters, numerous X-ray diffraction patterns of clay–polymer nanocomposites and reference materials are displayed to account for the effects of intercalation and exfoliations of layered aluminosilicates. Finally, multiscale molecular simulation protocols are presenting for predicting morphologies and properties of nanostructured polymer systems with industrial relevance. As far as applications are concerned, Clay–Polymer Nanocomposites examines structural composites such as clay–epoxy and clay–biopolymers, the use of clay–polymer nanocomposites as reactive nanocomposite fillers, catalytic clay-(conductive) polymers and similar nanocomposites for the uptake of hazardous compounds or for controlled drug release, antibacterial applications, energy storage, and more. - The most comprehensive coverage of the state of the art in clay–polymer nanocomposites, from synthesis and design to opportunities and applications - Covers the various methods of characterization of clay–polymer nanocomposites - including spectroscopy, thermal analyses, and X-ray diffraction - Includes a discussion of a range of application areas, including biomedicine, energy storage, biofouling resistance, and more