Structural Analysis of Interstratified Illite-Smectite by the Rietveld Method

Abstract

Rietveld method is a powerful tool in obtaining structural information of clay minerals by using of X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns. However, the interstratified illite-smectites (I-S) show various stacking defects preventing the direct application of this method. It was shown that the Rietveld method combined with a recursive structure-factor calculation can be used for describing the stacking disorder of I-S. In this study, a series of samples with different stacking sequences and different proportions of layer types were chosen to verify the applicability of Rietveld method in determination of structural parameters of I-S. The Rietveld refinements were carried out on powder samples and oriented specimens in air-dry (AD) and ethylene glycol (EG) state. The structural information obtained by X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and thermal analysis were used as an independent test of the reliability of the refinements. The refined and experimental results were compared systematically and the relationship between structural parameter was discussed. For powder and oriented specimens, the refined results of occupancies of potassium and iron and the proportion of illitic layers showed consistent results. The refined value of cis-vacant layers was in good agreement with the experimental data. The reliability of the refinements increased with increasing proportion of illitic layers.