Preparation and Characterization of Antibacterial Zn^(2+)-Exchanged Montmorillonites

Zn-montmorillonites（Zn-MMTs） as antibacterial compounds were prepared by an ion-exchange reaction. The reaction time, initial pH value and molar ratios of CEC influencing zinc content in Zn-MMTs were investigated, and Zn-MMTs were characterized by means of EDX, XRD, XPS, and SEM. The results of bacterial growth tests were confirmed by determination of the minimum inhibition concentrations （MICs） and minimum bactericidal concentrations （MBCs）. The experimental results show that the zinc is confirmed as bivalent zinc state, the d001 basal spacing of Zn-MMTs is enlarged with the enhancement of the zinc content, and the particles of Zn-MMTs are formed with irregular shape. Moreover, the antibacterial activity of Zn-MMTs increases with increasing the zinc content, and Zn-MMT-3 containing 6.76 mass% of zinc exhibits optimum antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus.

Swelling of K＋, Na＋ and Ca2＋-montmorillonites and hydration of interlayer cations： a molecular dynamics simulation

This paper performs molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the role of the monovalent cations K, Na and the divalent cation Ca on the stability and swelling of montmorillonite. The recently developed CLAYFF force field is used to predict the basal spacing as a function of the water content in the interlayer. The simulations reproduced the swelling pattern of these montmorillonites, suggesting a mechanism of their hydration different （K＋ 〈 Na＋ 〈 Ca2＋） from that of K＋-, Na＋-, and Ca2＋-montmorillonites. In particular, these results indicate that the valence of the cations has the larger impact on the behaviour of clay water systems. It also finds that the differences in size and hydration energy of K＋, Na＋ and Ca2＋ ions have strong implications for the structure of interlayer. This leads to the differences in the layer spacings of the simulated K＋-, Na＋-, and Ca2＋-montmorillonites. Furthermore, these simulations show that the K cations interact strongly with the clay sheets for the dehydrated clay sheets, but for the hydrated clays the Ca cations interact clearly strongly with the clay sheets.

Structure and antibacterial activity of Ce3+ exchanged montmorillonites

Four kinds of Ce3+ exchanged montmorillonites (Ce/MMTs) were prepared by an ion-exchange reaction, and characterized with energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), X-ray difference (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The surface properties and antibacterial activity of Ce/MMTs were also investigated. The chemical compositions of Ce/MMTs were determined, and the cerium of Ce/MMTs was confirmed to be present as trivalent cerium state. The d001 basal spacings of Ce/MMTs were enlarged with the enhancement of the cerium contents, and the particles were formed with irregular shape. On increasing the Ce contents of Ce/MMTs, the special surface areas were decreased, but the total pore volumes and the average pore sizes were increased. The antibacterial activity of Ce/MMTs is increased with increasing the cerium contents, and 1.5 g/L of Ce/MMT-3 containing 11.46wt.% of curium could remove all the Staphylococcus aureus and more than 99.9% of the Escherichia coli within 24.0 h of contact. Moreover, Ce/MMTs displayed bactericidal activity.

Thermal stability and long-acting antibacterial activity of phosphonium montmorillonites

Na-montruorillonite （Na-MMT） was exchanged with three quaternary atkylphosphonium salts： decyl tributylphosphonium bromide （DTBPBr）, dodecyl tributylphosphonium bromide （DDTBPBr） and hexadecyl tributylphosphonium bromide （HDTBPBr）, to investigate the effects of phosphonium salts species and relative molecular mass on the characteristics, morphology, thermal stability and long-acting antibacterial property of phosphonium montmorillonites. The resulting modified montmorillonites were characterized by the FTIR, XRD, TEM, and TG/DTG techniques. And minimum inhibitory concentration （MIC） was used to investigate antibacterial activity. The results show that the phosphonium salts are intercalated into Na-MMT, and the basal spacing of P-MMTs is enlarged with the increase of phosphonium salt content or the growth of alkyl chain length. DDTBP-MMT-3 with 19.83% （mass fraction of dodecyl tributylphosphonium salts, displays excellent thermal stability and long-acting antibacterial activity.

A molecular dynamics study of the swelling patterns of Na/Cs-montmorillonites and the hydration of interlayer cations

We report on a molecular dynamics study of the swelling patterns of an Na-rich/Cs-poor montomorillonite and a Csmontomorillonite.The recently developed CLAYFF force field is used to predict the basal spacing as a function of the water content in the interlayer.The simulations reproduce the swelling patterns of the Na and Cs-montomorillonite,suggesting a mechanism of its hydration different from that of the montomorillonite.In addition,we find that the differences in size and hydration energy of Na and Cs ions have strong implications for the structure and the internal energy of interlayer water.In particular,our results indicate that the hydrate difference in the presence of coexistent Na and Cs has a larger influence on the behavior of a clay-water system.For Na-rich/Cs-poor montomorillonite,the hydration energy values of Na ions and water molecules each have a dramatic increase compared with those in Na-montomorillonite on the interlayer spacing,and the hydration energy values of Cs ions and water molecules decrease somewhat compared with those in Cs-montomorillonite.

Effect of different montmorillonites on rheological properties of bitumen/clay nanocomposites

Different composites of organomodified montmorillonite(OMMT)/bitumen were prepared by melt blending with hexadecyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium modified montmorillonite(HBM) and double octadecyl dimethyl ammonium modified montmorillonite(DOM).The structures of two kinds of montmorillonite modified bitumen were characterized by X-ray diffraction(XRD).The effects of different montmorillonites on the dynamic rheological properties of the modified bitumens were investigated by dynamic shear rheometer(DSR).The XRD results show that DOM modified bitumen forms an intercalated structure,whereas the HBM modified bitumen forms an exfoliated structure.DSR results indicate that OMMT modified bitumens exhibit higher complex modulus,lower phase angle than pristine bitumen,which means that the resistance to rutting at high temperatures of pristine bitumen is improved due to the introduction of OMMT.Compared with DOM modified bitumen,HBM modified bitumen shows better rutting resistance,which is contributed to the formation of exfoliated structure in HBM modified bitumen.

Organomontmorillonites Modified with 2-Methacryloyloxy Ethyl Alkyl Dimethyl Ammonium Bromide

Organomontmorillonites （organo-MMT） were synthesized by means of montmorillonites （MMT） modified with a series of 2-methacryloyloxy ethyl alkyl dimethyl ammonium bromide （MAAB） having different alkyl chain lengths as cationic surfactants through a cationic exchanging reaction, and were characterized by FTIR, TG, elemental analysis, and XRD. The microenvironment of the organic interlayer such as the orientation and arrangement of the alkyl chains of MAAB, as well as the properties of nanocomposite hydrogels, were also investigated. The amount of organic components absorbed on interlayer and the basal spacing of organo-MMT both increase with the increasing of alkyl length of MAAB. When carbon number of alkyl chain is in the region of 8 to 14, the alkyl chains between layers would adopt a disordered gauche conformation; while the carbon number is 16, an ordered all-trans conformation with a vertical orientation would be found together with the disordered gauche conformation according to the results of XRD and FTIR. Due to the difference of microenvironment of organic interlayer, the Young＇s moduli of the nanocomposite hydrogels increased as the alkyl chains of MAAB became longer.

On the Electric Conductivity of Homoionic Montmorillonites at Low Water Content

Bibliographic reports on the electric conductivity of pure homoionic montmorillonite at low water content were analyzed in order to stress a general behavior of conductivity. At low water content, the conductivity is attributed to a mechanism of charge transport involving protons due to the influence of the electric field of the exchangeable cations on water molecules at the solvation shell. Conductivity was analyzed in relation with the polarizing power （ionic potential） of the exchangeable cations and with the influence of the connectivity within samples. The general conclusion stressed is that the connectivity due to the association between 2：1 unit layers （clay fabric） is the main factor on the experimental or ＂macroscopic＂ electric conductivity of pure homoionic montmorillonite at low water content. Considerations on the experimental conditions of different bibliographic reports were also made. The conclusion and the considerations made on experimental conditions are a good starting point for future researches on electric conductivity ofhomoionic montmorillonite at low water content.

Surface Modification of Montmorillonites by Chlorosilanes

Montmorillonite was modified by chlorosilane derivatives (trimethylchlorosilane and tert butyldimethylchlorosilane) bas^ed on the reaction between OH group and chlorosilane. Fourier transformed infrared spectra (FTIR) confirmed that chlorosilanes did react with the OH groups of montmorillonite. The effect of reaction time and dispersing agents on the intercalation was studied by wide angle X ray diffraction (WAXD) method. Further experiments proved that there is no reactive OH group on the surface of layers in the interlayer galleries of montmorillonite. The cation exchange capacity (CEC) of montmorillonites was measured, showing that after modification by chlorosilane derivatives, CEC values drastically decreased. The dispersibility measurements of montmorillonites were conducted, which showed that the dispersibility of modified montmorillonites both in H 2O and toluene were improved due to the decrease of attractions of particles and layers.

Chitosan-based triboelectric materials for self-powered sensing at high temperatures

Although biopolymers have been widely utilized as triboelectric materials for the construction of self-powered sensing systems,the annihilation of triboelectric charges at high temperatures restricts the output signals and sensitivity of the assembled sensors.Herein,a novel chitosan/montmorillonite/lignin(CML)composite film was designed and employed as a tribopositive layer in the assembly of a self-powered sensing system for use under hot conditions(25-70℃).The dense contact surface resulting from the strong intermolecular interaction between biopolymers and nanofillers restrained the volatilization of induced electrons.The optimized CML-TENG delivered the highest open-circuit voltage(V_(oc))of 262 V and maximum instantaneous output power of 429 mW/m^(2).Pristine CH-TENG retained only 39%of its initial Voc at 70℃,whereas the optimized CM_(5)L_(3)-TENG retained 66%of its initial Voc.Our work provides a new strategy for suppressing the annihilation of triboelectric charges at high temperatures,thus boosting the development of self-powered sensing devices for application under hot conditions.

Layer-by-layer fabrication of montmorillonite coating immobilizing Cu_(2)O nanoparticles for continuously catalyzing glycerol to dihydroxyacetone

Microreactors are increasingly used for green and safe chemical processes owing to their benefits of superior mass and heat transfer,increased yield,safety,and simplicity of control.However,immobilizing catalysts in microreactors remains challenging.In this investigation,a technique for creating Cu_(2)O/montmorillonite catalyst coating,using electrostatic attraction for layer-by-layer self-assembly,was proposed.The montmorillonite film's morphology and thickness could be efficiently regulated by adjusting the degree of exfoliation and surface charge of montmorillonite,alongside layer-by-layer coating times.The Cu_(2)O nanoparticles were immobilized using the flow deposition approach.The resulting Cu_(2)O@montmorillonite-film-coated capillary microreactor successfully transformed glycerol into dihydroxyacetone.The conversion of glycerol and product selectivity could be controlled by adjusting the molar ratio of reactants,temperature,residence time,and Cu_(2)O loading.The maximum glycerol conversion observed was 47.6%,with a 27%selectivity toward dihydroxyacetone.The study presents a technique for immobilizing montmorillonite-based catalyst coatings in capillary tubing,which can serve as a foundation for the future application of microreactors in glycerol conversion.

Preparation and Performance of Organically Modified Montmorillonite Composite Separation Membrane

A new composite separation membrane was developed by using organically modified montmorillonite(OMMT)as an additive.The effects of OMMT on the modification and properties of PVDF composite membranes were investigated.It is found that different kinds and amounts of OMMT into the casting solution can obviously change the pure water flux,separation performance and hydrophilicity of composite membrane in varying degrees.When the TA/PDA-MMT was 0.5 wt%,the pure water flux of the membrane reached the maximum,which was 584.7 L/(m^(2)·h),about 6 times that of the original membrane.The OMMT/PVDF composite membrane had good hydrophilicity and stability in the treatment of oily wastewater.The development of novel OMMT/PVDF composite membrane will provide a new idea for solving the problem of oily wastewater treatment.

Vertically aligned montmorillonite aerogel-encapsulated polyethylene glycol with directional heat transfer paths for efficient solar thermal energy harvesting and storage

The conversion and storage of photothermal energy using phase change materials(PCMs)represent an optimal approach for harnessing clean and sustainable solar energy.Herein,we encapsulated polyethylene glycol(PEG)in montmorillonite aerogels(3D-Mt)through vacuum impregnation to prepare 3D-Mt/PEG composite PCMs.When used as a support matrix,3D-Mt can effectively prevent PEG leakage and act as a flame-retardant barrier to reduce the flammability of PEG.Simultaneously,3D-Mt/PEG demonstrates outstanding shape retention,increased thermal energy storage density,and commendable thermal and chemical stability.The phase transition enthalpy of 3D-Mt/PEG can reach 167.53 J/g and remains stable even after 50 heating-cooling cycles.Furthermore,the vertical sheet-like structure of 3D-Mt establishes directional heat transport channels,facilitating efficient phonon transfer.This configuration results in highly anisotropic thermal conductivities that ensure swift thermal responses and efficient heat conduction.This study addresses the shortcomings of PCMs,including the issues of leakage and inadequate flame retardancy.It achieves the development and design of 3D-Mt/PEG with ultrahigh strength,superior flame retardancy,and directional heat transfer.Therefore,this work offers a design strategy for the preparation of high-performance composite PCMs.The 3D-Mt/PEG with vertically aligned and well-ordered array structure developed in this research shows great potential for thermal management and photothermal conversion applications.

Preparation of PrFe_(x)Co_(1-x)O_(3)/Mt catalyst and study on degradation of 2-hydroxybenzoic acid wastewater by catalytic wet peroxide oxidation

In this study,the perovskite nanocomposite PrFe_(x)Co_(1-x)O_(3)(Pr(S))was successfully synthesized by the sol-gel method;PrFe_(x)Co_(1-x)O_(3)/Al-pillared montmorillonite(Pr(S)/Mt)catalysts were prepared by impregnation(D)method and solid-melting(G)method,respectively,with Pr(S)as the active component and Al-pillared montmorillonite as the carrier.The catalysts were applied to treat the 2-hydroxybenzoic acid(2-HA)-simulated wastewater by catalytic wet peroxide oxidation(CWPO)technique,and the chemical oxygen demand(COD)removal rate and the 2-HA degradation rate were used as indicators to evaluate the catalytic performance.The results of the experiment indicated that the solid-melting method was more conducive to preparing the catalyst when the Co/Fe molar ratio of 7:3 and the optimal structural properties of the catalysts were achieved.The influence of operating parameters,including reaction temperature,catalyst dosage,H_(2)O_(2)dosage,pH,and initial 2-HA concentration,were optimized for the degradation of 2-HA by CWPO.The results showed that 97.64%of 2-HA degradation and 75.23%of COD removal rate were achieved under more suitable experimental conditions.In addition,after the catalyst was used five times,the degradation rate of 2-HA could still reach 76.93%,which implied the high stability and reusability of the catalyst.The high catalytic activity of the catalyst was due to the doping of Co into PrFeO_(3),which could promote the generation of HO·,and the high stability could be attributed to the loading of Pr(S)onto Al-Mt,which reduced the leaching of reactive metals.The study of reaction mechanism and kinetics showed that the whole degradation process conformed to the pseudo-firstorder kinetic equation,and the Langmuir-Hinshelwood method was applied to demonstrate that catalysis was dominant in the degradation process.

Preparation, characterization, antimicrobial and cytotoxicity studies of copper/zincloaded montmorillonite

Background： A series of modified montmorillonites（Mt） including zinc-loaded Mt（Zn-Mt）, copper-loaded Mt（Cu-Mt）, copper/zinc-loaded Mt with different Cu/Zn ratio（Cu/Zn-Mt-1, Cu/Zn-Mt-2, Cu/Zn-Mt-3） were prepared by an ion-exchange reaction, and characterized using X-ray diffraction（XRD）, fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy（FTIR） and transmission electron microscopy（TEM）. The specific surface areas, antimicrobial activity and cytotoxicity of the modified Mt were investigated.Results： In the modified Mt, hydrated Cu ions and Zn ions were exchanged in the interlayer space of Mt and the particles were irregular shapes. The results showed that Cu/Zn-Mt enhanced antibacterial and antifungal activity compared with Zn-Mt and Cu-Mt possibly due to the synergistic effect between Cu and Zn. Among the Cu/Zn-Mt with different Cu/Zn raitos, Cu/Zn-Mt with a Cu/Zn ratio of 0.98 or 0.51 showed higher antimicrobial activity against gram-negative bacteria（Escherichia coli）, gram-positive bacteria（Staphylococcus aureus）, fungi（Candida albicans）.Moreover, the antimicrobial activity of Cu/Zn-Mt was correlated with its specific surface area. Cytotoxicity studies on IPEC-J2 cell showed a slight cytotoxicity of Cu/Zn-Mt.Conclusions： The current data provide clear evidence that in terms of its antimicrobial activity and relatively low toxicity, the Cu/Zn-Mt holds great promise for applications in animal husbandry.

Study on the Mechanism of Innovative Montmorillonite for Diarrhea Treatment

[Objective] This study aimed to investigate the mechanism of innovative montmorillonite for diarrhea treatment. [Method] Thirty healthy weanling piglets （Duroc x Landrace x Yorkshire） were randomly divided into five groups and fed with basal diet, basal diet ＋ 1 g/kg innovative montmorillonite, basal diet ＋ 3 g/kg innovative montmorillonite, basal diet ＋ 5 g/kg innovative montmorillonite and basal diet ＋ 3 g/kg Bacillus subtilis microecologic agent, respectively. After four weeks, blood samples were collected via precaval vein, to detect the content of TFF3, NO and SOD in serum by ELISA kits. [Result] Compared with blank control group, the content of TFF3, NO and SOD in high-dose innovative montmorillonite group was extremely significantly increased, extremely significantly reduced and significantly in- creased, respectively; the content of TFF3 and NO in middle-dose innovative mont- morillonite group was significantly increased and significantly reduced, respectively. [Conclusion] Innovative montmorillonite may exert beneficial therapeutic actions on diarrhea by increasing TFF3 and SOD levels and decreasing NO level.

Efficient and Convenient Procedures for the Formation andCleavage of Steroid Acetals Catalysed by Montmorilloaite K 10

Acetalization of steroid ketones and cleavage of the acetals have ben carried out inexcellent yield under catalysis of montmorillonite K 10.

Extended DLVO theory applied to coal slime-water suspensions

Coal slimes are mainly composed of coal and clay particles.The interaction energies among these particles were calculated using extended DLVO(DERJAGUIN-LANDAU-VERWEY-OVERBEEK)theory and the aggregation mechanisms were analyzed based on the settling experiments for coal-kaolinite and coal-montmorillonite suspensions,respectively,under different conditions of water hardness.The results indicate that for coal-kaolinite suspensions,as the water hardness reaches 10.0mol/L,the coal particles aggregate with each other easily,and then,the coal particles may aggregate with kaolinite particles.However,no aggregation occurs between kaolinite particles.A clay platelet network is formed in coal-montmorillonite suspensions by montmorillonite particles and coal particles are captured into the network.Coal and montmorillonite particles settle completely.

A Novel Thixotropic Phenomenon——Complex Thixotropic Behavior

ＡＮｏｖｅｌＴｈｉｘｏｔｒｏｐｉｃＰｈｅｎｏｍｅｎｏｎ——ＣｏｍｐｌｅｘＴｈｉｘｏｔｒｏｐｉｃＢｅｈａｖｉｏｒ＊Ｔｏｗｈｏｍｃｏｒｒｅｓｐｏｎｄｅｎｃｅｓｈｏｕｌｄｂｅａｄｄｒｅｓｅｄ．ＨＯＵＷａｎ－ｇｕｏ＊，ＳＵＮＤｅ－ｊｕｎ，ＨＡＮＳｈｕ－ｈｕａ...

Extractive oxidative desulfurization of model oil/crude oil using KSF montmorillonite-supported 12-tungstophosphoric acid

12-Tungstophosphoric acid（PW） supported on KSF montmorillonite, PW/KSF, was used as catalyst for deep oxidative desulfurization（ODS） of mixed thiophenic compounds in model oil and crude oil under mild conditions using hydrogen peroxide（H2O2） as an oxidizing agent. A one-factor-at-a-time method was applied for optimizing the parameters such as temperature, reaction time, amount of catalyst, type of extractant and oxidant-tosulfur compounds（S-compounds） molar ratio. The corresponding products can be easily removed from the model oil by using ethanol as the best extractant. The results showed high catalytic activity of PW/KSF in the oxidative removal of dibenzothiophene（DBT） and mixed thiophenic model oil under atmospheric pressure at 75 ℃ in a biphasic system. To investigate the oxidation and adsorption effects of crude oil composition on ODS, the effects of cyclohexene, 1,7-octadiene and o-xylene with different concentrations were studied.