{{Short description, Hydrous oxide inorganic compounds
Hydrous ferric oxides, also called hydrous iron oxides and iron(III) oxide-hydroxides are
hydrous oxide Hydrous oxides are inorganic compounds of a metal, hydroxide, and weakly bound water. Some examples include:
* Hydrous ferric oxide (HFO)
*Hydrous cupric oxide
*Hydrous thorium oxide (THO) and hydrous titanium oxide (TiHO)
*Hydrous aluminum oxide ...
inorganic compounds.
They may be found as a class of
mineral
In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid chemical compound with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. ( ...
s that form from the
weathering
Weathering is the deterioration of rocks, soils and minerals as well as wood and artificial materials through contact with water, atmospheric gases, and biological organisms. Weathering occurs ''in situ'' (on site, with little or no movement), ...
of minerals that contain
iron
Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...
(Fe) and
hydroxide
Hydroxide is a diatomic anion with chemical formula OH−. It consists of an oxygen and hydrogen atom held together by a single covalent bond, and carries a negative electric charge. It is an important but usually minor constituent of water. I ...
s (OH−), and weakly bound
water
Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...
. They are poorly
crystal
A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macros ...
line, highly
porous
Porosity or void fraction is a measure of the void (i.e. "empty") spaces in a material, and is a fraction of the volume of voids over the total volume, between 0 and 1, or as a percentage between 0% and 100%. Strictly speaking, some tests measure ...
and have large surface areas. They usually occur as very small particles and tend to become more crystalline as they age because they are thermodynamically unstable. They have an affinity for organic and
inorganic
In chemistry, an inorganic compound is typically a chemical compound that lacks carbon–hydrogen bonds, that is, a compound that is not an organic compound. The study of inorganic compounds is a subfield of chemistry known as '' inorganic chemist ...
pollutants, which has led to an interest in using them as
sorbent
A sorbent is a material used to absorb or adsorb liquids or gases. Examples include:
*A material similar to molecular sieve material, which acts by adsorption (attracting molecules to its surface). It has a large internal surface area and good th ...
s for the treatment of effluents and polluted water. Hydrous iron oxides include
ferrihydrite
Ferrihydrite (Fh) is a widespread hydrous ferric oxyhydroxide mineral at the Earth's surface, and a likely constituent in extraterrestrial materials. It forms in several types of environments, from freshwater to marine systems, aquifers to hydr ...
,
akaganéite
Akaganeite, also written as the deprecated Akaganéite,Ernst A.J. Burke (2008):Tidying up Mineral Names: an IMA-CNMNC Scheme for Suffixes, Hyphens and Diacritical marks. ''Mineralogical Record'', volume 39, issue 2. is a chloride-containing iro ...
,
feroxyhyte
Feroxyhyte is an oxide/hydroxide of iron, δ-Fe3+O(OH). Feroxyhyte crystallizes in the hexagonal system. It forms as brown rounded to concretionary masses. Feroxyhyte is opaque, magnetic, has a yellow streak, and has a relative density of 4.2.
...
,
goethite
Goethite (, ) is a mineral of the diaspore group, consisting of iron(III) oxide-hydroxide, specifically the "α" polymorph. It is found in soil and other low-temperature environments such as sediment. Goethite has been well known since ancient t ...
,
lepidocrocite
Lepidocrocite (γ-FeO(OH)), also called esmeraldite or hydrohematite, is an iron oxide-hydroxide mineral. Lepidocrocite has an orthorhombic crystal structure, a hardness of 5, specific gravity of 4, a submetallic luster and a yellow-brown stre ...
and
limonite
Limonite () is an iron ore consisting of a mixture of hydrated iron(III) oxide-hydroxides in varying composition. The generic formula is frequently written as FeO(OH)·H2O, although this is not entirely accurate as the ratio of oxide to hydroxid ...
.
They may also be precipitated in highly porous poorly crystalline or amorphous forms and therefore be good adsorbents used for example in
water treatment
Water treatment is any process that improves the Water quality, quality of water to make it appropriate for a specific end-use. The end use may be drinking water, drinking, industrial water supply, irrigation, river flow maintenance, water recrea ...
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See also
*
Ferrihydrite
Ferrihydrite (Fh) is a widespread hydrous ferric oxyhydroxide mineral at the Earth's surface, and a likely constituent in extraterrestrial materials. It forms in several types of environments, from freshwater to marine systems, aquifers to hydr ...