The effect of microstructural changes caused by mechanical modification on adsorption properties of diatomite samples were investigated. The microstructure has been characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) while the degree of metal adsorption was evaluated by Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometry (ICP AES). The results show that metal sorption capacity of diatomite is considerably improved after mechanical modification and it can be attributed to amorphysation of the material. Immobilization efficiency increased from 22% for untreated to 81% for the treated sample after 5h at BPR 4.This qualifies natural diatomite as a material for wastewater remediation.

In this paper, raw natural metakaolin (MK, Serbia) clay was used as a starting material for the synthesis of geopolymers for thermal treatment. Metakaolin was obtained by calcination of kaolin at 750 °C for 1 h while geopolymer samples were calcined at 900 °C, which is the key transition temperature. Metakaolin was activated by a solution of NaOH of various concentrations and sodium silicate. During the controlled heat treatment, the geopolymer samples began to melt slightly and coagulate locally. The high-temperature exposure of geopolymer samples (900 °C) caused a significant reduction in oxygen, and even more sodium, which led to the formation of a complex porous structure. As the concentration of NaOH (6 mol dm⁻³ and 8 mol dm⁻³) increased, new semi-crystalline phases of nepheline and sanidine were formed. Thermal properties were increasingly used to better understand and improve the properties of geopolymers at high temperatures. Temperature changes were monitored by simultaneous use of thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential thermal analysis (DTA). The loss of mass of the investigated samples at 900 °C was in the range of 8–16%. Thermal treatment of geopolymers at 900 °C did not have much effect on the change in compressive strength of investigated samples. The results of thermal treatment of geopolymers at 900 °C showed that this is approximately the temperature at which the structure of the geopolymer turns into a ceramic-like structure. All investigated properties of the geopolymers are closely connected to the precursors and the constituents of the geopolymers.