Foundry Bentonite/sodium bentonite/sodium montmorillonite

Product name:Montmorillonite Clay

Montmorillonite Clay Properties

• In terms of color and appearance, Montmorillonite appears dull, and it is a massive mineral, which is usually white, but at times pink, grey or tinted with yellow or green. The additional colors depend on the concentration of the minerals that the clay is made up of.
• In terms of texture, montmorillonite clay is soft. In fact it is one of the softest clays mainly because of the extreme concentration of small mineral particles.
• Montmorillonite clay is earthy, with a low luster, due to the fine grained minerals in its composition. Luster is the way light interrelates with the montmorillonite.
• The clay’s transparency quality (diaphaneity) is translucent to opaque however this is highly influenced by the type of crystals that make up the material. Generally it is not fluorescent but when it contains autunite, it may glow in the dark.
• Montmorillonite swells when added to water however, the swelling depends on the composition of the clay and the molecular spaces between the layers.
• Crystal symmetry is monoclinic prismatic

What is Montmorillonite Clay?

Montmorillonite, a phyllosilicate, is a soft type of mineral that exists in small crystals which accumulate to form clay. Phyllosilicates or sheet silicates, are a group of minerals that include the micas, chlorite, serpentine, talc, and the clay minerals. The clay is named after Montmorillon (France) where it was first discovered.

Sodium and Calcium Montmorillonite Clay

There exist two types of montmorillonite, sodium and calcium. Sodium montmorillonite is commonly known as sodium bentonite. The presence of sodium as the predominant exchangeable cation can result in the clay swelling to many times its original volume. Sodium montmorillonite has most of its uses in the industries whereby it is used in : oil well drilling mud, plaster, cat litter, cement tiles, lubricating grease, dynamite, matches, paints, copy paper, shoe polish, concrete, cleaning agents, wall boards, and crayons. Most of these uses are attributed to swelling property of sodium montmorillonite.

Calcium montmorillonite, is also known as “living clay”. Why is it called living clay? It is called so because it majorly consists of minerals that improve the production of enzymes in living organisms.

Benefits:

• It is healing clay for stomach. It improves the speed and efficiency of the digestive system.
• Strengthening both natural and acquired immunity thus sealing off preventable infections
• Reducing allergies to foods and drugs
• Eliminating heavy metals and other toxins from the body
• Hastening pelotherapy (mineral clay therapy)
• Keeping the liver healthy for proper detoxification
• Promoting the presence of normal flora and other beneficial bacteria in the small and large intestines