Bentonite Industrial Applications
Bentonite Use in cosmetic and pharmaceutical preparations :
Bentonite gels are used as a carrier for a number of cosmetic preparatios, tooth-pastes, creams for skin and other similar products. For the preparation of cosmetic creams, bentonite is generally used as a paste formed with water and glycerine. Bentonite when intimately mixed with water in the proportion of one to four gives a pasty mass with the consistency of a heavy grease and in this form it is used for the preparation of medicinal ointments. Bentonite in the natural state is non-poisonous and harmless; thus it finds use in tooth-paste and even in the preparation of lipstick.
The swelling type of bentonite is finding increasing use in the manufacture of insecticides and paints. The latest use has been its development as a bonding agent in pelletizing iron ore fines in the USA. The taconite agglomeration plant in north-eastern Minnesota consumes a considerable quantity of bentonite.
Bentonite Use as grouting material :
Bentonite has great water binding ability and consequently very low permeability to water. It has been found, that the prmeability of the soil is reduced considerably when substituted by sodium bentonite. Hence, this material is often employed in construction engineering ot make a porous medium water-tight. It can be used alone or with some other grouting material.
Bentonite Use in drilling muds :
Drilling muds consist of water to which sodium bentonite and pulverized barytes are added. Such muds are prepared mainly for deep drilling, like oil-well drilling. Bentonite imparts two properties : It gives the fluid a viscosity several times that of water and thixotrophy; It seals the wall of the holes, thus preventing water loss.
The quantity of bentonite used is variable depending upon the depth of the hole to be drilled. Generally one tonne of bentonite is used to prepare about 100 barrels of mud.
Bentonite Use as decolourizer :
Decolourizing bentonites are used in the decolourization of animal and vegetable facts (like ground-nut, castor-oil and Vanaspati) and petroleum oil, lubricants, paraffins and other waxes. These are decolourized in two ways: By the percolation method, By the contact method.
Bentonite Use as foundry sands :
Bentonite is utilized in foundry to bind the sand grains into desired shapes. Bentonite helps in retaining the mechanical shape of the mould by making the particles of sands adhere and also making the surface impermeable. Strength and fusion point are the two important properties desired for selecting bentonite. Generally, the swelling type of bentonite is used though other types of bentonites have also been used.
Bentonite Tests and specifications
Decolourizing power of a clay is determined by: Percolation, Contact method. In both the processes the bleaching property of a clay is tested against the volume and colour of the filtrate obtained through a clay of known bleaching property.
In the percolation method a comparison is made between the decolourizing property of the clay under test and a standard clay whose decolourizing power is known. For this purpose, standard ground-nut oil is taken and is allowed to pass through a column containing granular clay under examination. The decolourized oil is collected and its volume is measured. The procedure is repeated using a column of standard clay and the decolourized oil is collected. By a comparison of the yield in both cases, the efficiency of decolourization of the clay under test can be determined with respect to the standard clay.
In the contact process, the decolourizing power of the clay is determined by comparing the colour produced by mixing the clay with a standard oil stock, agitating the mixture at a given temperature and filtering the clay from the oil. The amount of a standard clay required to produce the same colour being known, the decolourizing power of the clay being treated can be expressed as a percentage of the standard.
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