Isolated kaolinite layer

Hydrogen-Bonded Interactions of Surfaces of the Isolated Kaolinite Layer... 

The clay mineral spectrum is made up essentially of illite, kaolinite, chlorite and mixed-layer swelling clays of the illite-smectite type. The qualitative and quantitative composition of the clay minerals depends on their depositional environment. In littoral zones where the influence of the continents is pronounced, the kaolinite content may reach 30% whereas in the deeper parts of the sea it will be only 10%. For the mixed-layer clays the opposite trend may be observed. The widespread presence of these minerals, the genetic conditions of which are similar to those of smectite, suggests an arid climate over the East Saharan synclinorium during the Visd. This also explains the formation of evaporites in isolated highly saline basins in the western Saharan region. 

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