Advances in Kaolinite Group Clay Minerals and Their Applications
A special issue of Minerals (ISSN 2075-163X). This special issue belongs to the section "Clays and Engineered Mineral Materials".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2025 | Viewed by 349
Special Issue Editors
Interests: mineralogical characterization; clay, clay mineral, and other natural material used in cosmetics, pharmaceutical, energy, and environmental applications; nanocomposites’ synthesis and characterization; molecular simulations (quantum and classical) of clay minerals interacted with organic or inorganic materials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: nanoporous materials; metal-organic frameworks; clay science; computational chemistry
Interests: halloysite nanotubes; geopolymeric materials; nanoclays; nanocomposites and nanotechnology; thermal analysis and calorimetry characterizations; biopolymers
Interests: mineralogical characterization; clay mineral deposits genesis; clay, clay minerals, and other natural material applications; nanocomposites’ synthesis and characterization
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The kaolinite group is one of the most important groups of clay minerals due to their small particle size, special characteristics, and the variety of applications of these minerals. The minerals of the kaolinite group are structured by one tetrahedral sheet connected with one octahedral sheet (1:1 layer structure) with empirical formula Al2Si2O5(OH)4. The clay minerals that belong to this group are kaolinite, dickite, and nacrite, which have been characterized as polytypes, and halloysite which is characterized as the hydrated polymorph of kaolinite. Halloysite and kaolinite are the common clay minerals of this group and can be found on high-purity deposits. Because of their abundant nature and special features, halloysite and kaolinite, whether in their pure form or modified, can be used in various applications due to their potential interactions with a wide range of molecules. Thus, both minerals have the potential to be used in a wide variety of applications such as pharmaceutical applications mainly as drug carriers, in materials science as the base for the preparation of nanocomposites, and in soil and water decontamination, i.e., as sorbent materials for a variety of contaminants, as well as in other non-environmental uses.
This Special Issue seeks to investigate current research advancements in kaolinite-group clay minerals with a focus on their final applicability in various fields, proved by experimental or/and theoretical studies.
The topics covered by this Special Issue include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Novel processes for kaolinite-group mineral-based nanocomposites preparation.
- Pure kaolinite-group minerals or kaolinite-group mineral-based nanocomposites for targeted drug delivery.
- Kaolinite-group mineral-based nanocomposites for photocatalytic applications.
- Kaolinite-group mineral-based nanocomposites for cosmetics.
- Pure or modified kaolinite-group minerals for water and soil decontamination.
- Molecular simulations of kaolinite-group mineral-based complexes.
- Kaolinite-group minerals for environmental nanotechnologies.
We encourage the submission of research articles, reviews, case studies, commentaries, and technical notes that will contribute to advancing knowledge in the field of applied mineralogy, with a particular focus on advances in kaolinite-group clay minerals and their applications. By disseminating cutting-edge research findings and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, our goal is to enhance the collective knowledge base and support the applications of kaolinite-group minerals on a real scale in several sectors.
We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Dr. Eleni Gianni
Dr. Daniel Moreno-Rodriguez
Dr. Martina Maria Calvino
Prof. Dr. Dimitrios Papoulis
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Minerals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- kaolinite-group mineral-based nanocomposites
- halloysite nanotubes
- kaolinite
- pharmaceutical applications
- environmental applications
- molecular simulations
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