| Kaolinite | |
|---|---|
 | |
| General | |
| Category | Mineral |
| Formula (repeating unit) | Al2Si2O5(OH)4 |
| Crystal system | triclinic |
| Identification | |
| Color | White, sometimes red, blue or brown tints from impurities |
| Cleavage | perfect on {001} |
| Mohs scale hardness | 2 - 2.5 |
| Luster | dull and earthy |
| Specific gravity | 2.16 - 2.68 |
| Refractive index | α 1.553 - 1.565, β 1.559 - 1.569, γ 1.569 - 1.570 |
Kaolinite is a clay mineral with the chemical composition Al2Si2O5(OH)4. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet linked through oxygen atoms to one octahedral sheet of alumina octahedra. Rocks that are rich in kaolinite are known as china clayorkaolin.
The name is derived from Gaolin 高岭("High Hill") in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, China. Kaolinite was first described as a mineral species in 1867 for an occurrence in the Jari River basin of Brazil.[1]
Kaolinite is one of the most common minerals; it is mined, as kaolin, in Brazil, France, United Kingdom, Germany, India, Australia, Korea , the People's Republic of China, and the southeastern U.S. states of Georgia, Florida, and, to a lesser extent, South Carolina.
Kaolinite has a low shrink-swell capacity and a low cation exchange capacity (1-15 meq/100g.) It is a soft, earthy, usually white mineral (dioctahedral phyllosilicate clay), produced by the chemical weathering of aluminium silicate minerals like feldspar. In many parts of the world, it is colored pink-orange-red by iron oxide, giving it a distinct rust hue. Lighter concentrations yield white, yellow or light orange colours. Alternating layers are sometimes found, as at Providence Canyon State ParkinGeorgia, USA.
Kaolin is used in ceramics, medicine, coated paper, as a food additive, in toothpaste, as a light diffusing material in white incandescent light bulbs, and in cosmetics. The largest use is in the production of paper, including ensuring the gloss on some grades of paper. Commercial grades of kaolin are supplied and transported as dry powder, semi-dry noodle or as liquid slurry.
A more recent, and more limited, use is as a specially formulated spray applied to fruits, vegetables, and other vegetation to repel or deter insect damage. A traditional use is to soothe an upset stomach, similar to the way parrots (and later, humans) in South America originally used it. Until the early 1990s it was the active substance of anti-diarrhoea medicine Kaopectate.
Kaolin is also used experimentally in animal models of hydrocephalus research (Bering, 1962).
The crystallography of kaolinite played a role in Linus Pauling's work on the nature of the chemical bond.
Kaolinite can contain very small traces of uranium and thorium, and is therefore useful in radiological dating. While a single magazine made using kaolin does not contain enough radioactive material to be detected by a security-oriented monitor, this does result in truckloads of high end glossy paper occasionally tripping an overly-sensitive radiation monitor.
The Eden Project, a large environmental complex near St Austell, Cornwall, England, is constructed in a disused china clay pit.
Sandersville, a small town in Georgia, USA, holds an annual kaolin festival every year. Sandersville has huge kaolin deposits throughout the town and the surrounding areas. The town is based on the kaolin industry.
In some regions of the SE USA, kaolin is marketed under the name "White Dirt" for human consumption. It is a form of geophagy and while some claim it is healthy, it is also potentially dangerous.
