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Aluminum silicate is a mixture of aluminum, silica, and oxygen that can be a mineral or clay. It occurs in three forms, with kyanite and sillimanite used industrially. Kaolin, a type of clay, has been used for medicinal and commercial purposes. Other compounds include magnesium aluminum silicate, used in antacids and cosmetics, and sodium aluminum silicate, used in powdered foods and synthetic zeolites.
Aluminum silicate, also known as aluminum silicate, is a mixture of aluminum, silica and oxygen that can be a mineral or combined with water to form a clay. It can also combine with other elements to form various other minerals or clays. Some of these shapes are used medicinally and industrially and retain their strength at high temperatures, a property known as refractory. Others are used as gemstones.
This mineral occurs in three different forms: kyanite, andalusite or sillimanite. They all have the chemical formula Al2SiO5, but have different crystal structures. All three forms are rarely found in the same rock, because each occurs under different conditions of pressure and temperature. Only kyanite and sillimanite are used industrially.
Kyanite is unusual in that its hardness varies with the direction of the crystals. Some of the crystals are similar to blue sapphires and are used as gemstones. Kyanite is also used in the manufacture of the frequently used industrial compound mullite. This compound has the chemical formula 3Al2O3.2SiO2. It is used as a refractory in the ceramics industry and in the manufacture of many things including high voltage electrical insulation, glass, and heating elements.
Sillimanite can also be used as a refractory. It is used in a variety of industries, including glass manufacturing, ceramics, cement, iron foundries, and metal smelting.
Aluminum silicate can be hydrated or have water molecules associated with it, in which case it forms a clay. Kaolin is the term for a group of clay minerals with the chemical formula of Al2O3.2SiO2.2H20. It forms a layer of two alternating crystals: one of silicon-oxygen and one of alumina. Kaolinite is the main constituent of kaolin.
Kaolin has been used for many years to control diarrhea and to dry poison ivy and poison oak rashes. It has also been used to treat diaper rash. Commercially, it was important in the pottery industry, especially for the production of fine porcelain. It is also used to make concrete, brick and insulation, among other things.
Another compound found as a mineral and as a clay is magnesium aluminum silicate, which is composed of magnesium, aluminum, silica, and oxygen. In its mineral form, it is a type of garnet called pyrope, which is often used as a gemstone, and is the only garnet that is always red in color. Its chemical formula is Mg3Al2(SiO4)3, although traces of other elements are often present.
The hydrated form is a blend of clays and this purified blend is commonly used as an antacid. It is also used as a thickener in beauty and cosmetic products and as an inactive ingredient in deodorants.
Sodium aluminum silicate is also called sodium aluminosilicate and is composed of sodium, aluminum, silica and oxygen. Two such minerals are albite and jadeite. Albite has the chemical formula of NaAlSi3O8, while that of jadeite is NaAlSi2O6. Albite is common in the earth’s crust and decomposes under pressure to form jadeite and quartz. Jadeite is one of the types of minerals that make up the jade gemstone.
There is an industrial form of sodium aluminosilicate, known as synthetic amorphous sodium aluminosilicate, which contains water. This is a series of compounds and has no fixed chemical composition. It is used as an additive in powdered foods to prevent lumps from forming.
From this compound synthetic zeolites are prepared. These are very porous minerals and are used commercially as adsorbents. They are primarily used as laundry detergents, although they have a variety of other industrial uses.
