Preparation and properties of a low-cost porous ceramic support from low-grade palygorskite clay and silicon-carbide with vanadium pentoxide additives

Alow-cost porous ceramic support was prepared from low-grade palygorskite clay(LPGS) and silicon carbide(SiC)with vanadium pentoxide(V_(2) O_(5)) additives by a dry-press forming method and sintering.The effects of SiC-LPGS ratio,pressing pressure,carbon powder pore-forming agent and V_(2) O_(5) sintering additives on the microstructure and performance of the supports were investigated.The addition of an appropriate amount of SiC to the LPGS can prevent excessive shrinkage of the support during sintering,and increase the mechanical strength and open porosity of the supports.The presence of SiC(34.4%) led to increases in the open porosity and mechanical strength of 40.43% ± 0.21% and(17.76 ± 0.51) MPa,respectively,after sintering at 700℃ for 3 h.Because of its low melting point,V_(2) O_(5) can melt to liquid during sintering,which increases the mechanical strength of the supports and retains the porosity.Certainly,this can also encourage efficient use of the LPGS and avoid wasting resources.

Distribution of Palygorskite in the Lingtai Profile of Chinese Loess Plateau:Its Paleoclimatic Implications

Palygorskite is a typical indicator mineral of the arid and strong evaporation environment. Distribution of palygorskite in loess-red clay sequences may act as an important indicator for reconstruction of the paleoenvironment and paleoclimate. In this paper, field emission scanning electron microscope and high-resolution transmission electron microscope observations on the red clay-loess-paleosol of the Renjiapo profile at Lingtai, Gansu Province indicate that palygorskite occurs widely in red clay sequences formed before 3.6 Ma, but no occurrence has been found in eolian sediments since 3.2 Ma. Micromorphological features and microstructure of palygorskite show that it is an autogenic mineral formed during pedogenesis, and transformed from iilite-montmorilionite under the pore water action. In the Lingtai profile, the disappearance horizon of palygorskite is consistent with those of increasing magnetic susceptibility, dust flux and depositional rate. The distribution of palygorskite in the profile indicates that the interval of around 3.6 Ma was an important transformation period of the East Asian paleomonsoon, when changes took place in the East Asia paleoclimate pattern, i.e. a high-frequency strong fluctuation alternative evolution of the environment. Therefore, palygorskite is a key indicator mineral of the East Asian paleomonsoon evolution of that time.

Suspension Polymerization of Methyl Methacrylate Stabilized Solely by Palygorskite Nano Fibers

A kind of fibrous clay, palygorskite （PAL）, was used as the sole stabilizer in suspension polymerization without the using of any other stabilizer usually used, especially polymeric stabilizers. In order to improve the compatibility with the organic monomer, PAL nano fibers were organically modified with silane coupling agent methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane （MPS）. Transmission electron microscopy （TEM） and Fourier-transform infrared （FTIR） spectroscopy results show that the hydrolyzed MPS was attached onto PAL surface through Si--O--Si bonds formation without morphology change of PAL. At a loading amount of PAL to monomer as low as 0.36 wt%, effective stabilization could be achieved. After suspension polymerization, spherical poly（methyl methacrylate） （PMMA） particles were obtained. Scanning electron microscopy （SEM） analysis on both the outer surface and the inner cracked surface of the spherical PMMA particles indicates that the PAL particles reside on the surface of the PMMA spheres. The densely stacked PAL together with attached silane coupling agent stabilized the droplets throughout the suspension polymerization.