Process for preparing organoclays for aqueous and polar-organic systems

A process for preparing organoclays as thixotropic agents to control the rheology of water-based paints and other aqueous and polar-organic systems. The process relates to treating low-grade clay ores to achieve highly purified organoclays and/or to incorporate surface modifying agents onto the clay by adsorption and/or to produce highly dispersed organoclays without excessive grinding or high shear dispersion. The process involves the treatment of impure, or run-of-mine, clay using an aqueous biphasic extraction system to produce a highly dispersed clay, free of mineral impurities and with modified surface properties brought about by adsorption of the water-soluble polymers used in generating the aqueous biphasic extraction system. This invention purifies the clay to greater than 95%.

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What is claimed is:

1. A process for preparing organoclays for use in aqueous systems, the process comprising the steps of:

crushing clay ore to less than about 100 mesh;

dispersing the clay ore in a polymer-rich phase of an aqueous biphasic extraction system;

adsorbing a polymer onto clay of the clay ore;

mixing the polymer-rich phase containing dispersed clay ore with an aqueous salt solution;

separating the polymer-rich phase from the aqueous salt solution;

recovering organoclay from the polymer-rich phase by a step of flocculation;

washing the organoclay to remove excess polymer; and

drying the organoclay.

2. The process of claim 1 wherein the polymer-rich phase of the aqueous biphasic extraction system comprises a solids concentration which produces a smectite-clay concentration of between 2 and 6 weight-percent in the polymer-rich phase of theaqueous biphasic extraction system.

3. The process of claim 1 wherein the aqueous salt solution comprises at least one of sodium carbonate, sodium sulfate and sodium phosphate.

4. The process of claim 1 wherein the polymer-rich phase containing dispersed clay ore is mixed with the aqueous salt solution at room temperature.

5. The process of claim 1 further including the step of mixing the polymer-rich phase containing dispersed clay ore with the aqueous salt solution at an elevated temperature.

6. The process of claim 1 wherein the flocculation is achieved using a polymer having a molecular weight higher than 1 million.

7. The process of claim 1 wherein the organoclay is dried at a temperature below about 110.degree. C.

8. The process of claim 1 wherein the aqueous biphasic extraction system simultaneously converts the raw clay to a sodium form, generates an organoclay, and separates the organoclay from mineral impurities present in the clay ore.

9. The process of claim 1 wherein a mechanical mixer is used to perform the step of mixing the polymer-rich phase containing dispersed clay ore with the aqueous salt solution.

10. The process of claim 1 wherein the clay ore is mixed with the polymer-rich phase for a sufficient length of time to complete conversion of the clay to a sodium form, dispersion of the clay, and modification of surface properties of the claythrough polymer attachment.

11. The process of claim 1 wherein the polymer-rich phase is heated to between about 35.degree. C. and 60.degree. C.

12. The process of claim 1 wherein surface properties of the clay are modified through adsorption of polymers in the polymer-rich phase.

13. The process of claim 12 wherein the polymers are low-molecular-weight, water-miscible polymers.

14. The process of claim 12 wherein the polymers are nonionic.

15. The process of claim 12 wherein the process further allows incorporation of additional modifying agents at ion exchange sites subsequent to recovering the organoclay from the polymer-rich phase.

16. The process of claim 15 wherein the additional modifying agent is at least one of quaternary ammonium salts, low-molecular-weight polymers, nonionic surfactants and cationic surfactants.