The Structures of Vermiculites and their Collapse by Dehydration

摘要: The question whether vermiculites are distinct minerals has puzzled mineralogists for many years. A number of attempts have been made to find definite type formulas for them. Often they have been considered as “hydrated micas.” It will be shown in the following pages that this idea comes very close to the truth, and that a vermiculite is a definite mineral species with a definite crystal structure. If, however, a so-called vermiculite contains alkalies to an appreciable extent a type of mineral results which is neither a vermiculite nor a mica but an …