Microwave Dielectric Relaxation of Bound Water to Silica, Alumina, and Silica-Alumina Gel Suspensions

Study of individual Na-montmorillonite particles size, morphology, and apparent charge

Size, morphology, and apparent charge of individual Na-montmorillonite particles of natural MX-80 sodium montmorillonite were investigated in the present study by the use of three coupling methods. In the first part of this work, natural and synthetic montmorillonite clays were studied with atomic force microscopy (AFM) and photo-correlation spectroscopy (PCS). Both techniques exhibit the presence of two clay populations with a high dispersion of the length distribution. Microscopic analysis of the system revealed that clay particles could be reasonably approximated at low concentrations to ellipsoidal tactoids about 1.2 nm high. Average dimensions of the first population were typically 320-400 nm long/250 nm wide and 200-250 nm long/120 nm wide for natural and synthetic clays, respectively. The second population exhibits smaller sizes: 65 and 50 nm long and 35 and 25 nm wide for natural and synthetic clays, respectively. The statistics obtained for natural clay were then verified by PCS experiments on sodium montmorillonite suspensions. Both techniques reveal an important length dispersion. However, the relative proportions of the two kinds of particles could not be established properly because of both lack of statistics and limitations of the employed techniques. In the following part, conductivity measurements were performed on dilute montmorillonite clay suspensions. Raw data were then interpreted with the sizes and morphological information gained in the first part of the present work. The apparent charge of the clay sheets was found to be 8% of the structural charge.

Effects of the counterion on dielectric spectroscopy of a montmorillonite suspension over the frequency range 105–1010 Hz

Dielectric measurements were carried out on suspensions of montmorillonite clay exchanged with three different counterions: sodium, ammonium, and tetramethylammonium (TMA). Only two dielectric absorption peaks could be identified for the clay sample with the TMA counterion, whereas three peaks were found for the two inorganic counterions. The dielectric process observed at around 10 GHz is due to the orientation of bulk water molecules, judging from the relaxation time and relaxation strength. The relaxation strength of the process occurring at around 10 MHz was compared with the coefficient of adiabatic compressibility obtained from ultrasound velocity measurements. The increase in the relaxation strength with decreasing compressibility indicates that the process at around 10 MHz is caused by the orientation of bound water molecules on the clay samples. The relaxation strength of the process occurring at around 10 MHz for the TMA sample was remarkably small. Furthermore, the network structure of the bound water molecules can be characterized by a property peculiar to the TMA sample, taking into account the value of its Cole-Cole parameter. Results for the relaxation strength of the process occurring at around 100 kHz were compared with those for electrophoretic mobility. This comparison revealed that discrimination between bound ions and ions in the diffuse double layer is important, and both the relaxation and electrophoretic results could be satisfactorily explained by surface polarization of the clay.

Crowding and hydration effects on protein conformation: a study with sol-gel encapsulated proteins

We are developing an experimental system for testing the effects of macromolecular crowding and molecular confinement on protein structure. In the present study, solvent effects on the secondary structure of two proteins were examined by circular dichroism following encapsulation in the hydrated pores of a silica glass matrix by the sol-gel method. Changes in the unfolded conformations of encapsulated apomyoglobin and reduced serum albumin were analyzed after equilibration with aqueous solutions of natural osmolytes, short-chain alcohols, polyethylene glycol, and a complete series of Hofmeister cations. In many instances, the alpha-helical content of the encapsulated protein was increased by addition of solutes at concentrations that have no effect on the protein in the absence of the glass. The results are discussed from the perspective of water structure. We argue that perturbed water at the silica interface causes an increase in the average free energy of the bulk water phase which, consequently, diminishes the strength of the hydrophobic effect inside the glass matrix and destabilizes the conformation of encapsulated proteins. We propose that solutes can increase the strength of the hydrophobic effect and influence folding equilibria without directly interacting with the protein. A hypothesis is provided for the apparent paradox that kosmotropic (strongly water binding) anions favor native protein structure, whereas chaotropic (weakly water binding) cations enhance native protein structure. The encapsulation results suggest that macromolecular crowding and molecular confinement are accompanied by hydration effects that may oppose or potentiate the stabilizing effects of excluded volume on protein structure, depending on the surface chemistry of the crowding agent and its influence on bulk water structure. In the crowded environment of a living cell, excluded volume effects, surface-induced water structure, and compatible solutes are expected to complement the dominant forces in protein folding.

Molecular confinement influences protein structure and enhances thermal protein stability

The sol-gel method of encapsulating proteins in a silica matrix was investigated as a potential experimental system for testing the effects of molecular confinement on the structure and stability of proteins. We demonstrate that silica entrapment (1) is fully compatible with structure analysis by circular dichroism, (2) allows conformational studies in contact with solvents that would otherwise promote aggregation in solution, and (3) generally enhances thermal protein stability. Lysozyme, alpha-lactalbumin, and metmyoglobin retained native-like solution structures following sol-gel encapsulation, but apomyoglobin was found to be largely unfolded within the silica matrix under control buffer conditions. The secondary structure of encapsulated apomyoglobin was unaltered by changes in pH and ionic strength of KCl. Intriguingly, the addition of other neutral salts resulted in an increase in the alpha-helical content of encapsulated apomyoglobin in accordance with the Hofmeister ion series. We hypothesize that protein conformation is influenced directly by the properties of confined water in the pores of the silica. Further work is needed to differentiate the steric effects of the silica matrix from the solvent effects of confined water on protein structure and to determine the extent to which this experimental system mimics the effects of crowding and confinement on the function of macromolecules in vivo.

Effects of pH on Dielectric Relaxation of Montmorillonite, Allophane, and Imogolite Suspensions

Dielectric measurements were performed on montmorillonite, allophane, and imogolite suspensions under various pH conditions, using time domain reflectometry over the frequency range 10 kHz-20 GHz. A dielectric relaxation peak due to bound water could be observed for all the clays. Allophane has two peaks, indicating that its peaks are very similar to those of silica-alumina gels. Although imogolite has a similar chemical composition, only one peak was found. The relaxation strength of montmorillonite is greater than that of the other two clays. For all the clays, the relaxation strength depended on the pH. A change in the relaxation strength according to a change in pH is explained in terms of the different network structures of the clay particles. It is suggested that bound water influences the network structure formation. In montmorillonite, a great relaxation process detected at low frequency is caused by surface polarization of counterions. The change in measure of the structural unit with the pH, identified from Schwartz's theory, has a tendency similar to that postulated by other experimental techniques, and surface charge densities identified are close to those estimated from CEC. Copyright 1999 Academic Press.