Chemical analysis for optimal synthesis of ferrihydrite-modified diatomite using soft X-ray absorption near-edge structure spectroscopy

Effects of process parameters such as concentrations of FeCl₂, NaOH, and drying temperature on the formation mechanism and chemical characteristics of ferrihydrite-modified diatomite are studied by using X-ray absorption near-edge structure spectroscopy. The spectra were recorded in total electron yield mode and/or fluorescence yield mode to investigate the chemical nature of Fe and Si on the surface and/or in the bulk of ferrihydrite-modified diatomite, respectively. It was found that only the surface SiO₂ was partially dissolved in the NaOH solution with stirring and heating, whereas the bulk of diatomite seemed to be preserved. The dissolved Si was incorporated into the structure of ferrihydrite to form the 2-line Si-containing ferrihydrite on the surface of diatomite. The crystalline degree of ferrihydrite increased with the increasing FeCl₂ concentration and the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller specific surface area of ferrihydrite-modified diatomite decreased with the increasing FeCl₂ concentration. The crystalline degree of ferrihydrite decreased with the increase of NaOH concentration. The high temperature calcination caused an energy shift in the Si L-edge spectra to the high energy side and a transformation of Si-containing ferrihydrite to crystallized hematite might occur when ferrihydrite-modified diatomite is calcined at 900°C. In this study, the optimal synthesis conditions for the ferrihydrite-modified diatomite with the least crystalline Si-containing ferrihydrite and the highest surface area were found to be as the follows: 0.5 M FeCl₂ solution, 6 M NaOH solution and drying temperature of 50°C.