Thin-walled nanoscrolls by multi-step intercalation from tubular halloysite-10 Å and its rearrangement upon peroxide treatment

Abstract Surface modification of the halloysite-10 A mineral with tubular morphology can be achieved by slightly modified procedures developed for the delamination of kaolinite minerals. The resulting delaminated halloysite nanoparticles have unexpected surface/morphological properties that display, new potentials in catalyst development. In this work, a four-step intercalation/delamination procedure is described for the preparation of thin-walled nanoscrolls from the multi-layered hydrated halloysite mineral that consists of (1) intercalation of halloysite with potassium acetate, (2) replacement intercalation with ethylene glycol, (3) replacement intercalation with hexylamine, and (4) delamination with toluene. The intercalation steps were followed by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, N 2 adsorption-desorption, thermogravimetry, and infrared spectroscopy. Delamination eliminated the crystalline order and the crystallite size along the ‘ c ’-axis, increased the specific surface area, greatly decreased the thickness of the mineral tubes to a monolayer, and shifted the pore diameter toward the micropore region. Unexpectedly, the removal of residual organics from intercalation steps adsorbed at the nanoscroll surface with a peroxide treatment resulted in partial recovery of crystallinity and increase of crystallite size along the ‘ c ’-crystal direction. The d(001) value showed a diffuse pattern at 7.4–7.7 A due to the rearrangement of the thin-walled nanoscrolls toward the initial tubular morphology of the dehydrated halloysite-7 A mineral.