Contribution of Infrared Spectroscopy to the Study of Corrensite

A corrensite from Taro Valley, Italy, was studied by infrared analysis at different temperatures in the natural state and after exchange with seven different cations. The vibrational bands in the OH-stretching region can be divided into three main absorption regions: 3690-3640, 3580-3560, and 3500-3000 cm−1. The influence of the cation hydration water was observed in the third region only, whereas the intensity, frequency, and shape of the residual bands were not related to the nature of the exchangeable cations. The bands of region I were unaffected by heating the sample to 500°C; however, those in regions II and III were destroyed. Deuteration was not observed for any of the three OH-stretching regions. The dichroic behavior of the OH-stretching bands in the three regions were relatively affected by the exchangeable cations. Generally, the bands in region I exhibited a more dichroic behavior than those in regions II and III.From the IR data corrensite appears to consist of: (1) a trioctahedral silicate layer with an OH-stretching band at about 3685 cm−1, (2) a hydroxide layer with OH-stretching bands at about 3570 and 3420 cm−1, and (3) a distinct interlayer space that is not interstratified with the hydroxide layers.