I.R. Spectroscopic Evidence for Interaction Between Hydronium ions and Lattice OH Groups in Montmorillonite

At low levels of hydration, exchangeable D+ in montmorillonite interacts with lattice OH groups and quantitatively converts AlMgOH groups to AlMgOD. Hydroxyl groups coordinated to two Al ions undergo a slower exchange, the extent of which is restricted by octahedral Fe3+ ions. The OH stretching vibration of AlMgOH groups in montmorillonite is assigned an unusually high frequency (3687 cm−1) compared with that of the same group in phengites (3602 cm−1).