The Dolná Ves K-bentonite deposit is one of a few known economic accumulations of illite-smectite in the world. Several studies have been done on the illite-smectitic component isolated from the Dolná Ves K-bentonite, but there is a shortage of analytical data on the K-bentonite itself. The main goal of the present study was to perform mineralogical and physico-chemical characterizations of various technological types of K-bentonites from the Dolná Ves deposit to better understand the relationships between the various qualitative types and their properties. The type I (high-grade) K-bentonite contains 88–91 wt.% of illite-smectite. The type II (low-grade) K-bentonite contained substantially less illite-smectite, ranging from 37 to 63 wt.%. The illite-smectites isolated from the type I K-bentonites displayed greater expandability, contained more octahedral Mg and less octahedral Fe, had greater cation exchange capacity (CEC), smaller thickness of fundamental particles, and thinner illite-smectite crystals in comparison with illite-smectites from the type II K-bentonites. The LOI (loss-on-ignition) and Al₂O₃ content increased with increasing amount of illite-smectite. The increase in the expandability by 10% corresponded to an increase in CEC by ~10 meq/100 g. The type I K-bentonites had much greater mass loss at <250°C due to greater expandability. The best tilemaking performance was expected for the type I K-bentonite. This raw material could also be potentially valuable for the pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food industries. Overall, the results showed that the studied technological types of K-bentonites from the Dolná Ves deposit differ not only in terms of illite-smectite contents but also in terms of the nature of the illite-smectites.

Dolná Ves K-膨润土矿床是世界上少数已知的伊利石-蒙脱石经济矿藏之一。人们对从 Dolná Ves 钾膨润土中分离出的伊利石-蒙脱石成分进行了多项研究，但缺乏钾膨润土本身的分析数据。本研究的主要目标是对来自 Dolná Ves 矿床的各种技术类型的钾膨润土进行矿物学和物理化学表征，以更好地了解各种定性类型及其特性之间的关系。I 型（高品位）钾膨润土含有 88-91 wt.% 的伊利石-蒙脱石。II 型（低品位）钾膨润土含有明显较少的伊利石-蒙脱石，范围为 37 至 63 wt.%。从I型K膨润土中分离得到的伊利石蒙脱石与伊利石相比，具有更大的膨胀性，含有更多的八面体Mg和更少的八面体Fe，具有更大的阳离子交换容量（CEC）、更小的基本颗粒厚度和更薄的伊利石蒙脱石晶体。 -来自II型K-膨润土的蒙皂石。随着伊利石-蒙脱石用量的增加，LOI（烧失量）和Al ₂ O ₃含量增加。膨胀性增加 10% 相当于 CEC 增加约 10 meq/100 g。由于具有更大的膨胀性，I 型 K 膨润土在 <250°C 时具有更大的质量损失。I 型 K 膨润土预计具有最佳制砖性能。这种原材料对于制药、化妆品和食品行业也具有潜在价值。总体而言，结果表明，所研究的 Dolná Ves 矿床钾膨润土的技术类型不仅在伊利石-蒙脱石含量方面存在差异，而且在伊利石-蒙脱石的性质方面也存在差异。