Variations in the Electrokinetic Potential of Magnesium Hydrosilicate Fibers upon Treatment with Ammonium Chloride

Abstract

The effect of the treatment of magnesium hydrosilicate (Mg₃Si₂O₅(OH)₄) fibers with an aqueous 5% ammonium chloride solution at 37−40 and 57−60°C on their electrokinetic potential (ζ potential) is studied. The maximum time of exposure in the NH₄Cl solution was 100 min, while the ζ potential was measured every 20 min. It is shown that the treatment of the initial magnesium hydrosilicate fibers with the NH₄Cl solution leads to a reversal of their surface charge and a rise in the absolute value of the negative charge, which is explained by magnesium leaching out of the surface layer of the fibers. Washing of the treated fibers with distilled water leads again to the sign reversal of the ζ potential. Therewith, the character of the dependences of the fiber ζ potential on the time of the treatment with the 5% NH₄Cl solution at T = 37−40°C is the same before and after washing.