PIGE and XRF analysis of a nano-composite pillared layered clay material for nuclear waste applications

A special tailored aluminium pillared montmorillonite was prepared for radi ostrontium removal in complex ionic environment. In a first series of exper iments, the methods of PIGE and XRF were used to characterise the material as a cation exchanger. Furthermore, the charge carried by the pillars, a cr itical quantity of the pillaring process, was estimated. A qualitative mode l for the organisation and structural evolution of the clay lamellas from t he nm to the nun scale was developed. The possible use of a microbeam for q uantitative studies of pillared clays will be discussed. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.