Surface nanomorphology of montmorillonite modified with polyacrylic acid

Abstract

The effect of adsorption of polyacrylic acid (PAA) on the surface morphology of montmorillonite has been determined using atomic force microscopy (AFM). The analytical capabilities of this method for studying the initial stages of physicochemical transformations of the montmorillonite surface during coagulation structuring with an organic additive have been shown. It has been found that the surface structure of the original montmorillonite differs from that of the sample modified with an organic additive; the surface of the latter simultaneously contains molecular aggregates of various shapes and sizes, which depend on the suspension concentration. The surface roughness of the original and PAA-modified montmorillonite has been determined according to the derived longitudinal and transverse profiles of the samples.