Kaolinite and Palygorskite

Bauxite:

Boehmite, also known as hydrotalcite or bauxite, is an important precursor of active alumina, characterized by its high degree of order and complete crystallinity.

Bauxite has become an ideal choice for high-performance heat-resistant and flame-retardant materials due to its excellent thermal stability, and is widely used in fields such as halogen-free copper-clad panels, high-performance insulating materials, and heat-resistant engineering plastics. Additionally, it is not only a main raw material for coal chemical catalysts but also a fundamental material for preparing lithium battery separator coatings, sodium硫 battery solid electrolytes (β-Al₂O₃), and various special aluminum oxides. Especially, low-sodium ultra-fine bauxite-based low-sodium ultra-fine alumina possesses high purity, good insulation properties, and sintering activity, and has been successfully applied in areas such as lithium battery separators, precision/microcrystalline ceramics, integrated circuit chips, and aerospace light source devices.

Pseudo-boehmite

Pseudo-boehmite is an incomplete crystalline form of boehmite, sharing a similar chemical composition. It is a class of incomplete crystalline hydrated alumina, also known as monohydrated alumina or pseudo-monohydrate soft alumina.

Typical of pseudoboehmite is its ultra-thin folded sheet structure, which is an aluminum oxide hydrate with a unique spatial reticular structure. It boasts high specific surface area, large pore volume, and physical properties, as well as chemical characteristics of sol-gel transition under acidic conditions. These properties of pseudoboehmite enable its wide application across various industries. In the oil industry, it serves as a catalyst, carrier, and binder; in the automotive industry, it is used as a coating carrier for automotive exhaust treatment catalysts; in the environmental protection industry, it functions as a gas purification adsorbent, fluorine removal agent for drinking water, and color and odor agent for industrial wastewater; and in the construction industry, it is used as a paint additive, among others.

In summary, the differences are manifested in:

(1) Pseudoboehmite is an aggregate of amorphous substances; pseudoboehmite possesses a good crystal structure.

(2) Pseudo-kaolin has a higher specific surface area and larger pore volume compared to kaolin. The specific surface area of pseudo-kaolin decreases gradually with increasing temperature, whereas the specific surface area of kaolin initially increases and then decreases with rising temperature.

In addition, there exists a conversion relationship between the two: under suitable temperatures and pressures (such as hydrothermal conditions), pseudoboehmite gradually ages and crystallizes into boehmite. Therefore, in industrial production, it is common to synthesize pseudoboehmite or boehmite products with specific properties by controlling reaction conditions (pH, temperature, time, and aluminum source).

If you have any questions or needs regarding bauxite or pseudo-bauxite, welcome to contact Shandong Baer Chemical —— a professional manufacturer of alumina.