Preparation and characterization of anion-cation surfactants modified montmorillonite

A series of anion-cation surfactants modified organoclays are prepared by incorporating both cationic surfactant, hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (HDTMAB), and anionic surfactant, sodiumdodecyl sulfonate (SDS), to montmorillonite. The added amounts of surfactant varied from 0.2 to 4.0 CEC of the used montmorillonite, similar to those reported in literature. A combination of elemental analysis, X-ray diffraction and thermogravimetric analysis is used in the characterization of the resulting organoclays. The experimental results show that anionic surfactants can not be intercalated into the montmorillonite whereas they can be loaded onto cationic modified montmorillonite, resulting in a further increase of organic carbon content of the resulting organoclays. This study demonstrates that SDS can be intercalated into montmorillonite interlayer space through the interaction with HDTMAB rather than by ion exchange. The intercalation of SDS results in an increase of the basal spacing of the resulting organoclays when comparing with HDTMAB modified montmorillonite and higher decomposition temperature of the intercalated surfactants when comparing with them in bulk state. These new insights are of high importance in the application of organoclays in the fields of remediation of polluted water and synthesis of clay based nanocomposites.