Alteration of clay minerals—gamma-irradiation effects on physicochemical properties

In the present work, the influence of gamma-irradiation (1.1 MGy, 60Co) on physicochemical parameters (“crystallinity”, specific surface, cation exchange capacity, main layer charge) of various clay minerals (montmorillonite, illite and samples of the serpentine–kaolin group) were investigated. The influence of gamma-irradiation on the physicochemical properties is generally weak. A reduction of lattice iron during irradiation could be measured, which causes decreasing values of cation exchange capacity (CEC) and main layer charge of the smectites. A weak loss of “crystallinity” of kaolinite could be observed. sults show that the structure of clay minerals is stable even at high gamma-irradiation doses.