Hectorite

Hectorite is a soft, lithium- and magnesium-rich smectite clay mineral, typically formed when volcanic ash alters in alkaline, saline environments.

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Smectite: Smectite is a group of swelling clay minerals with layered structures and exchangeable interlayer cations. Hectorite belongs to this mineral group and shares its swelling layer structure.
Isomorphous substitution: Isomorphous substitution is the replacement of one ion by another of similar size within a mineral structure. Lithium-for-magnesium substitution creates the charge imbalance characteristic of hectorite.
Hector, California: Hector is a settlement in California’s Mojave Desert near deposits that gave hectorite its name. The mineral was named for its occurrence near Hector.
Laponite: Laponite is a synthetic hectorite-like clay used to form clear, thixotropic aqueous gels. It reproduces hectorite-like layered behavior in a manufactured material.
Montmorillonite: Montmorillonite is a dioctahedral smectite clay mineral with substantial swelling capacity. It is a familiar swelling smectite, but its octahedral chemistry differs from hectorite’s.
Phyllosilicate: Phyllosilicates are silicate minerals built from sheets of linked tetrahedra and octahedra. Hectorite’s crystal structure is a sheet silicate.
Cation-exchange capacity: Cation-exchange capacity measures how many positively charged ions a material can reversibly hold and exchange. Hectorite’s charged layers bind exchangeable cations at their surfaces and between layers.
Volcanic ash: Volcanic ash is fine-grained material ejected into the air during an explosive volcanic eruption. Alteration of volcanic ash supplies material from which hectorite can form.
Thixotropy: Thixotropy is a reversible, time-dependent decrease in viscosity under shear, followed by recovery at rest. Hectorite suspensions can thin during mixing and regain structure when left undisturbed.
Saponite: Saponite is a trioctahedral smectite clay mineral rich in magnesium, commonly with tetrahedral layer charge. It shares magnesium-rich trioctahedral layers with hectorite but differs in charge location and composition.