Physico-chemical study of selected surfactant-clay mineral systems

Abstract

A physicochemical study of the systems formed by the clay minerals, montmorillonite and kaolinite (layered) and sepiolite (non-layered) and the surfactants Triton X-100 (TX100, non-ionic), dodecyl sodium sulfate (SDS, anionic) and trimethyloctadecyl-ammonium bromide (ODTMA, cationic), with different chemical structure, was carried out by X-ray diffraction (XRD), infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis (TG/DTA). TG/DTA results indicated an increase in the thermal stabilization of non-ionic (TX100) and cationic (ODTMA) surfactants adsorbed by all clay minerals in relation to pure compounds. This effect was greater in montmorillonite and sepiolite than in kaolinite owing to these minerals must allow the establishment of a stronger bond with the surfactants as indicated by XRD and FTIR results. Differences in decomposition of anionic surfactant SDS are not emphasized due to the low adsorbed amount of this surfactant by all systems. The results obtained indicate the interest of taking into account the structure of surfactant and the clay mineral type when preparing customized surfactant-clay mineral systems which contribute to establish more efficient soil and water remediation strategies based in the use of these systems.