RADIGEL ™ IS A RHEOLOGICAL ADDITIVE CLAY FOR VARIOUS APPLICATIONS. RADIGEL ™ IS ORGANIC CLAY DERIVATIVE FOR THE ENTIRE ORGANOPHILIC CLAY SERIES WHICH IS USED IN LARGE QUANTITIES BY THE PAINT, GREASE, RUBBER TYRE, INK AND MANY OTHER INDUSTRIES THROUGHOUT THE WORLD. RADIGEL ™ IS AN ORGANOPHILIC CLAY COMPLEX FORMED BY THE REACTION OF HIGH MOLECULAR WEIGHT CATIONIC ORGANIC COMPMOUNDS WITH HIGHLY PURIFIED MONTMORILLONITE AS WELL AS HECTORITE.
RADIGEL ™ IS SPECIFICALLY MEANT FOR USE AS A GELLANT, THICKENERS AND ANTISETTLING AGENT FOR SOLVENT BASED-LIQUID SYSTEMS. RADIGEL ™ CLAY GELLANT IS SUPPLIED IN THE FORM OF DRY POWDER. FOR FULL DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR USEFUL CHARACTERISTICS, THE POWDER MUST BE THOROUGHLY DISPERSED SO AS TO GET COMPLETE OPENING OF THEIR PLATELETS OF THE MINUTE CRYSTALS.
HIGH CONTENT OF MONTMORILLONITE IN RADIGEL ™ IS AN ALUMINUM SILICATE IN WHICH MAGNESIUM HAS BEEN SUBSTITUTED FOR PART OF THE ALUMINUM. AS A RESULT OF THIS SUBSTITUTION, POSITIVE IONS SUCH AS SODIUM AND CALCIUM ARE ATTACHED TO THE SURFACES OF EDGE OF THE MINUTE CRYSTALS, THUS BALANCING THE NEGATIVE CHARGES, WHICH ARE LEFT WHEN Mg+2 TAKES THE PLACE OF Al+3. THE POSITIVE SODIUM AND CALCIUM IONS CAN BE EXCHANGE FOR OTHER BASES AND THEIR PRESENCE ACCOUNTS FOR THE HIGH CATION EXCHANGE CAPACITY OF THE MINERAL MONTMORILLONITE AS WELL AS HECTORITE.
LAYERS OF MOLECULAR WATER MAY ALSO OCCUR BETWEEN THE ALUMINIUM-SILICON SHEET UNITS. THIS WATER MAY BE DRIVEN OFF ON HEATING; THE MINERAL THEN SWELLS GREATLY ON ABSORBING WATER AGAIN. THIS PROPERTY GIVES MONTMORILLONITE THE ABILITY TO MAKE WATER BASED SYSTEMS THIXOTROPIC i.e. HIGH VISCOSITY AT LOW SHEAR AND LOW VISCOSITY AT HIGH SHEAR. IF THE SODIUM, MAGNESIUM AND CALCIUM IONS ARE REPLACED BY OTHER CAT IONS SUCH AS AMINES, ALKALIS, SURFACE-ACTIVE AGENTS, THEN ORGANOCLAY CAN BE PREPARED. THESE ORGANOCLAYS LIKE RADIGEL ™ HAVE THE ABILITY TO SWELL IN ORGANIC SOLVENTS SUCH AS XYLENE, TOLUENE, NAPHTHA, WHITE SPIRIT, MINERAL TURPENTINE OIL ETC. AND TO MAKE THEM THIXOTROPIC AS MONTMORILLONITE OR HECTORITE IS IN WATER.
RADIGEL ™ IS SPECIFICALLY MEANT FOR USE AS A GELLANT, THICKENERS AND ANTISETTLING AGENT FOR SOLVENT BASED-LIQUID SYSTEMS. RADIGEL ™ CLAY GELLANT IS SUPPLIED IN THE FORM OF DRY POWDER. FOR FULL DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR USEFUL CHARACTERISTICS, THE POWDER MUST BE THOROUGHLY DISPERSED SO AS TO GET COMPLETE OPENING OF THEIR PLATELETS OF THE MINUTE CRYSTALS.
HIGH CONTENT OF MONTMORILLONITE IN RADIGEL ™ IS AN ALUMINUM SILICATE IN WHICH MAGNESIUM HAS BEEN SUBSTITUTED FOR PART OF THE ALUMINUM. AS A RESULT OF THIS SUBSTITUTION, POSITIVE IONS SUCH AS SODIUM AND CALCIUM ARE ATTACHED TO THE SURFACES OF EDGE OF THE MINUTE CRYSTALS, THUS BALANCING THE NEGATIVE CHARGES, WHICH ARE LEFT WHEN Mg+2 TAKES THE PLACE OF Al+3. THE POSITIVE SODIUM AND CALCIUM IONS CAN BE EXCHANGE FOR OTHER BASES AND THEIR PRESENCE ACCOUNTS FOR THE HIGH CATION EXCHANGE CAPACITY OF THE MINERAL MONTMORILLONITE AS WELL AS HECTORITE.
LAYERS OF MOLECULAR WATER MAY ALSO OCCUR BETWEEN THE ALUMINIUM-SILICON SHEET UNITS. THIS WATER MAY BE DRIVEN OFF ON HEATING; THE MINERAL THEN SWELLS GREATLY ON ABSORBING WATER AGAIN. THIS PROPERTY GIVES MONTMORILLONITE THE ABILITY TO MAKE WATER BASED SYSTEMS THIXOTROPIC i.e. HIGH VISCOSITY AT LOW SHEAR AND LOW VISCOSITY AT HIGH SHEAR. IF THE SODIUM, MAGNESIUM AND CALCIUM IONS ARE REPLACED BY OTHER CAT IONS SUCH AS AMINES, ALKALIS, SURFACE-ACTIVE AGENTS, THEN ORGANOCLAY CAN BE PREPARED. THESE ORGANOCLAYS LIKE RADIGEL ™ HAVE THE ABILITY TO SWELL IN ORGANIC SOLVENTS SUCH AS XYLENE, TOLUENE, NAPHTHA, WHITE SPIRIT, MINERAL TURPENTINE OIL ETC. AND TO MAKE THEM THIXOTROPIC AS MONTMORILLONITE OR HECTORITE IS IN WATER.