Clay mineralClay minerals are hydrousaluminiumphyllosilicates (e.g. kaolin, Al2Si2O5(OH)4), sometimes with variable amounts of iron, magnesium, alkali metals, alkaline earths, and other cations found on or near some planetary surfaces. Clay minerals form in the presence of water and have been important to life, and many theories of abiogenesis involve them. They are important constituents of soils, and have been useful to humans since ancient times in agriculture and manufacturing.
San Bernardino County, CaliforniaCounty in California, United StatesCounty in California, United StatesSan Bernardino County ( ), officially the County of San Bernardino, is located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 2,181,654, making it the fifth-most populous county in California, and the 14th-most populous in the United States.
BentoniteBentonite ( ) is an absorbent swelling clay consisting mostly of montmorillonite (a type of smectite) which can either be Na-montmorillonite or Ca-montmorillonite. Na-montmorillonite has a considerably greater swelling capacity than Ca-montmorillonite.
LithiumChemical element with atomic number 3 (Li)H↑Li↓Nahelium ← lithium → beryllium
Barstow, CaliforniaBarstow (pronounced BAR-stoh) is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States, in the Mojave Desert of Southern California. Located in the Inland Empire region of California, the population was 25,415 at the 2020 census. Barstow is an important crossroads for the Inland Empire and home to Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow.
ClinoptiloliteClinoptilolite is a natural zeolite composed of a microporous arrangement of silica and alumina tetrahedra. It has the complex formula (Na,K,Ca)2–3Al3(Al,Si)2Si13O36•12H2O. It forms as white, green to reddish tabular monoclinictectosilicate crystals with a Mohs hardness of 3.5 to 4 and a specific gravity of 2.1 to 2.2. It commonly occurs as a devitrification product of volcanic glass shards in tuff and as vesicle fillings in basalts, andesites and rhyolites.
Hector MineHector Mine or The Hector is a mine in the Mojave Desert in San Bernardino County, California, about 8 miles southwest of Cady Peak. An occurrence of hectorite in the region gave the mineral its name and the 1999 Hector Mine earthquake, whose epicenter was close to The Hector, was also named after the mine. The mining camp and railroad complex, 4 miles north of the mine and now a tiny hamlet, was named Hector and Hector Road was named after it.
SmectiteA smectite (from Ancient Greek σμηκτός (smēktós) 'lubricated'; from σμηκτρίς (smēktrís) 'walker's earth, fuller's earth'; lit. 'rubbing earth; earth that has the property of cleaning') is a mineral mixture of various swelling sheet silicates (phyllosilicates), which have a three-layer 2:1 (TOT) structure and belong to the clay minerals. Smectites mainly consist of montmorillonite, but can often contain secondary minerals such as quartz and calcite.
Atlas MountainsThe Atlas Mountains are a mountain range in the Maghreb in North Africa. They separate the Sahara from the and the Atlantic Ocean; the mountain range stretches around 2,500 km (1,600 mi) through Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. The mountains are associated with the TitanAtlas. The range's highest peak is Toubkal, in central Morocco, with an elevation of 4,167 metres (13,671 ft). The Atlas Mountains are primarily inhabited by Berber populations.
Volcanic ashNatural material created during volcanic eruptionsAsh cloud from the 2008 eruption of Chaitén volcano, Chile, stretching across Patagonia from the Pacific to the Atlantic OceanAsh plume rising from Eyjafjallajökull on April 17, 2010Volcanic ash deposits on a parked McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 during the 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo. While falling ash behaves in a similar manner to snow, the sheer weight of deposits can cause serious damage to buildings and vehicles.
TuffTuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash lithifies into solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock containing 25–75% ash is described as tuffaceous (for example, tuffaceous sandstone). A pyroclastic rock containing 25–75% volcanic bombs or volcanic blocks is called tuff breccia.GhassoulGhassoul (Arabic: غسول) is a municipality in El Bayadh Province, Algeria. It is part of Brézina District and according to the 2008 census it had a population of 7,880. Its postal code is 32150, and its municipal code is 3205. It is also the name of a red Moroccan clay (sometimes known as Rhassoul) dug in the Atlas mountains.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.