Earth Science Museum
University of Waterloo
200 University Ave. W.
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, N2L 3G1
Phone: (519) 888-4567 ext. 32469
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Kathy Feick
Bentonite was first named Taylorite, after William Taylor, who studied clay deposits in the United States. The use of the name Taylorite stopped when this group of minerals was split up into separate groupings. In 1898, W C Knight used the name bentonite to refer to this specific type of clay because the first site discovered was near Fort Benton in the Wyoming, Montana region of the United States. Bentonite clay is an aluminum phyllosilicate, which consists mostly of the mineral montomorilonite. It has the incredible ability to increase as much as 14 times its original volume.
Bentonite is part of the smectite class of clays. Smectites are clay minerals which are approximately less than 2 micrometres in largest dimension. Although they are rare in large quantities, smectites are common in most earth surface sediments. The formation of large deposits of smectite (i.e., bentonite) requires rather special geologic conditions.
Bentonite is a material derived from the alteration, over geological time periods, of glassy material emitted from volcanoes (tuff or ash), or from the alteration of silica bearing rocks such as granite and basalt. Bentonite only forms in the presence of water. Depending on the nature of formation, bentonite can have a variety of accessory minerals in addition to its constituent mineral montmorillonite. These minerals may include attapulgite, kaolin, mica, and illite as well as minerals like quartz, feldspar, calcite and gypsum. The presence of these minerals may affect the value of a deposit.
Most bentonite deposits date from the Tertiary to Mesozoic periods (up to 230 million years ago). This may be due to the tendency for bentonite convert to another non-swelling clay called illite or because the conditions for initial formation of the bentonite were not favourable.
Two types of bentonite are recognized, and the uses of each depend on specific physical properties.
Type 1 Sodium Bentonite
Sodium Bentonite is the type of swelling clay. It has single water layer particles which contain Na+ as the exchangeable ion
Type 2 Calcium Bentonite
Calcium Bentonite is the non-swelling clay. It has a double water layer with Ca2+ as the exchangeable ion.
Bentonite deposits are normally exploited by quarrying. It is economical to mine bentonite up to 50 feet. When the mineral is extracted it generally has a moisture content of 30%. The material then has to be crushed and if necessary, activated with the addition of soda ash (Na2CO3). The bentonite then is allowed to dry either by being air dried or by forced drying to reach an approximate moisture content of 15%. It is purified to remove any associated gangue minerals, treated with acids to produce acid-activated bentonite, or treated with organics produced organoclays, depending on the use of the product.
Earth Science Museum
University of Waterloo
200 University Ave. W.
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, N2L 3G1
Phone: (519) 888-4567 ext. 32469
The University of Waterloo acknowledges that much of our work takes place on the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabeg and Haudenosaunee peoples. Our main campus is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River. Our active work toward reconciliation takes place across our campuses through research, learning, teaching, and community building, and is co-ordinated within the Office of Indigenous Relations.