2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16
The name of this amazing mineral comes from the Greek zeo - “boil” and lithos - “stone”, because when lowered into water it bubbles with air for a long time.
Natural zeolite was first described in the 18th century. The light mineral of various shades and densities is of sedimentary-volcanic origin and is widely distributed on the planet. Druses of some types of crystals are of interest to stone collectors. The French drug "Smecta" is well known to the ordinary consumer, water with it is prescribed for babies with colic. It is made from synthetic zeolite.
Porous structure
Zeolite is a generalized name for frame aluminosilicates mined in deposits and obtained synthetically. Their crystal structure is represented by tetrahedra of silicon and aluminum oxides combined into lacy frameworks with cavities of the same size filled with alkali and alkaline earth metal cations and water molecules.
Why is zeolite valuable and interesting? The properties of this stone to the absorption and loss of water without destroying the crystal framework and the exchange of cations are used ascatalyst, sorbent, ion exchanger, molecular sieve. It is the porous structure and the diverse composition of ions that determine its qualities, making zeolite indispensable for use in the chemical, nuclear, food industries, agriculture, everyday life and medicine.
Openwork crystals and dirty work
Zeolite is an ion exchanger: it gives off potassium and calcium ions, other micro- and macroelements, and instead of them takes toxic ions and keeps them in its lattice.
The calcined mineral has an absorption capacity of up to 50% of the volume. Since the beginning of the 20th century, it has found application in petrochemistry for dehydration and purification of petroleum products, for grouting slurries in wells.
Able to actively absorb not only water, but also a variety of chemical and biological contaminants: heavy metals, nitrates, pesticides, radionuclides, oils. Used in gas and wastewater treatment plants of industrial enterprises.
Stop radiation
Interest in zeolites increased after the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Radioactive isotopes of cesium and strontium are dangerous for humans because the body perceives them as calcium and potassium ions and accumulates them. The liquidators had only alcohol and red wine to protect themselves from the inside. Novosibirsk scientists led by academician Vasily Ivanovich Bgatov brought zeolite to Pripyat. It was ground in a mortar, mixed with water, and after the shift, the liquidators were given water. Later it was concluded that those participants in the events who did not refuse this "talker" had signs of radiation sickness in the formweakness, changes in the leukocyte formula, tooth decay appeared to a much lesser extent.
In 1998, the Litovit drug created on the basis of this material was recognized as the best means for removing radioactive cesium and strontium from the body.
Without the use of zeolite, the water supply of settlements in Ukraine with water after the accident would have been impossible. Sokirnite from the Transcarpathian deposit is used at all water intake stations of the Dnieper basin. They also disinfected the wastewater discharged into Pripyat from the station. Passing through a two-meter layer of zeolite reduces the contamination of water with isotopes by two orders of magnitude.
After the Fukushima accident, zeolite bags were also used to absorb radionuclides, dumping them into the drainage system to reduce pollution of water drained into the ocean.
Mining and production
There are about 1000 deposits in the world where natural zeolite (tuff) can be mined on a large scale. There were more than 20 of them on the territory of the former USSR - from Transcarpathia and Transcaucasia to Sakhalin. But the industrial value and need is such that since the middle of the last century synthetic zeolite has been produced. In it, part of the cations of alkali and alkaline earth metals is replaced by an alkylammonium ion. Dozens of species have been synthesized, some of which have no natural analogues. During the production process, the amorphous active mixture is structured at a temperature not exceeding 200 °C.
Building material
Slabs of Armenian tuff almostthirty shades are famous as a building and finishing material with excellent properties. The most beautiful houses in Yerevan and many cities of the world are faced with it.
Natural zeolite is used as a filler in the production of high-strength concrete, for example, for hydraulic structures, monolithic construction. Waste from quarries and a synthetic product are used to manufacture foam and cellular materials, ceramic bricks.
The production of thermal insulation, film materials, fireproof partitions, cardboard, paper, varnishes, paints, plastics - zeolite is required everywhere.
For both cats and fish
A wide range of household applications is based on the fact that zeolite is a sorbent. Dehumidifiers for shoes, fillers for aquariums and cat litter, odor absorbers for refrigerators, fragrances, dry perfumes - this is not a complete list of useful products.
But the zeolites in the washing powder are unlikely to justify the use. Replacing phosphates is good, but the mineral does not dissolve in water, rinses out poorly, settles on things, which is especially noticeable when wringing out dark fabrics. But the zeolite nozzle on the hose that supplies water to the washing machine will get rid of the formation of scale and save on detergents.
Living Water
The use of zeolite for water purification makes it not only suitable for use, but also gives it unique properties. Passed through the filter, it becomes like a spring. You can not only drink it, but also bathe babies, use it for cosmetic purposes, water flowers andseedlings, germinate seeds, pour into the aquarium. Comparative studies show high biological activity of water purified by zeolite. If there is no such filter, you can buy mineral pebbles (available in a pharmacy), rinse, put in a three-liter jar, and preferably two. Water after 12 hours can already be used. From time to time, the zeolite is dried and calcined, but after three months it must be changed. Used stones should not be poured into indoor flowers, as they accumulate a lot of harmful substances.
Who are lithophages?
The information that wild animals love to find and lick s alt is not entirely true. Studies have shown that they lick and eat rocks formed when rocks break. These stones are not s alty at all, but contain montmorillonite, clinoptilolite and other varieties of zeolites.
The phenomenon of eating stones, clay, chalk (or lithophagy) is widespread in nature among animals, among uncivilized peoples, sometimes children and pregnant women cannot resist this. In this way, they instinctively replenish the need for minerals and heal.
Stone of Life
But not all zeolites can be ingested. Harm can be caused by varieties with dangerous needle crystals. In Russia, only one zeolite is certified for food and medical purposes - clinoptilolite of the Kholinsky deposit in Buryatia with an oval structure. It has been used for about 20 years to produce a biologically active additive "Litovit" - a stone of life. The drug is produced in the form of powder, granules, tablets from one zeolite or with the addition of bran, fungus, probiotics, medicinal plants. Approved for use and distribution in 10 countries of the world, the first certified in the He althy Eating - He alth of the Nation program.
Indications for its use are very wide: acute poisoning, chronic intoxication, allergies, metabolic disorders, hepatitis, bronchopulmonary diseases, various deficient conditions (anemia, osteoporosis, arrhythmia, convulsions) and their prevention.
It should be taken into account that Litovit intake must be separated by time with the use of drugs by at least an hour and a half, not to replace treatment with them. This is an additional and preventive remedy.
In the body, zeolite acts not only as a sorbent that cleanses of harmful substances, but also as a donor of essential trace elements. They also make excellent scrubs and masks for cleansing and nourishing the skin of the face and body.
In science and medicine, it is needed for chromatography, purification of insulin and blood, does not violate the protein composition of biological fluids.
For milk yield and harvest
Natural zeolite is also used in agriculture - as an effective mineral supplement for pets, large and small livestock, poultry and fish, as well as a soil improver and fertilizer for plant nutrition.
Enrichment of the diet with it leads to recovery, rapid growth, increase in weight gain, and improvement in product quality. Shiny smooth coat, good appetite, safe bearing of offspring, strong teeth, bones andeggshells, high milk yields - these are indicators of sufficient mineral intake in living creatures.
Zeolite is necessary to improve soil properties. It is used for indoor flowers, in greenhouses, vegetable gardens, when arranging lawns, golf courses, planting trees, making crops for cereals. Water permeability, aeration increases, the acid and mineral composition of the soil normalizes. A single application of zeolite retains its effect for 5 years. Plants get sick less, develop better, give more yield. Attention to environmental problems forces us to look for effective means of combating environmental pollution. Zeolite is an indispensable material for solving such problems.
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