Modified Clay and Zeolite Nanocomposite Materials

Mariano Mercurio is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Sciences and Technology, at the University of Sannio, Italy. He graduated in geological sciences in 2004 from the Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy. He received his PhD in Earth and Life Sciences from the University of Sannio in 2010. His research principally focuses on the study of georesources of the Campania Region (natural zeolites and clayey minerals) and geomaterials of archeological and historical importance utilized in the built environment. He is an active reviewer for several international scientific journals including the Journal of Food Engineering (Elsevier), Periodico di Mineralogia (Edizioni Nuova Cultural), the Journal of Hazardous Materials (Elsevier), Powder Technology (Elsevier) and Processing and Application of Ceramics (PAC) and is an active member of numerous professional and scientific associations, such as the Ordine dei geologi della regione Campania (OGC); Società Italiana di Mineralogia e Petrologia (SIMP); International Natural Zeolite Association (INZA);Società Italiana della Scienza del Suolo (SISS); .Associazione Italiana per lo Studio delle Argille (AISA) Italian Society for the Study of Clays and Gruppo nazionale informale GABeC (Georisorse, Ambiente, Beni Culturali). Binoy Sarkar is an early-career researcher based at the Future Industries Institute, University of South Australia. He received his PhD in Environmental remediation from the University of South Australia in 2011. He has over nine years’ experience in water treatment research underpinning principles of applied clay mineralogy, environmental nanotechnology, chemistry and microbiology. He is currently the technical editor for the International Journal of Agriculture, Environment and Biotechnology (New Delhi Publishers) and has been the Managing Guest Editor for two special issues in Applied Clay Science (Elsevier) on ‘Clay-based EnvRemTech and in Environmental Technology and Innovation (Elsevier) on ‘Innovation in clay and nanomaterial-based environmental remediation’. He is a reviewer for several international journals and an active member of numerous professional associations and societies including: the Clay Minerals Society of America; the Australasian Soil and Plant Analysis Council; the Australian Nanotechnology Network; and the Australian Clay Minerals Society. Alessio Langella is currently a full professor in the Department of Sciences and Technology, University of Sannio, Italy. His research interests include: Mineralogical characterization of microporous materials with specific reference to zeolitebearing tuffs (phillipsite, chabazite and clinoptilolite); Technological characterization of zeolitized materials; application of natural zeolites; Laboratory simulation of zeolitization processes; the Study of the decay processes affecting stone materials used in the historical architecture, and Archaeometric studies on potteries aimed at recognizing ancient techniques, raw material supplying areas for the production of manufacts of archeological relevance. He is a member of the Advosry Board of the Italian Journal of Geosciences and an active reviewer for most of the major international journals on Earth Sciences and Cultural Heritage.

• PrefaceMariano Mercurio, Binoy Sarkar and Alessio Langella1. Systematics, crystal structures and occurrences of zeoliteG. Diego Gatta and Paolo Lotti2. Zeolites as potential drug carriersDanina Krajišnik, Aleksandra Daković, Jela Milić and Marija Marković3. Surface modification of zeolites for environmental applicationsBruno de Gennaro4. Natural zeolite - Alternative adsorbent in polishing or post-treatment of watersEva Chmielewská5. Modified clay minerals for environmental applicationsBinoy Sarkar, Ruhaida Rusmin, Uzochukwu C. Ugochukwu, Raj Mukhopadhyay and K. M. Manjaiah6. Clay minerals in drug delivery systemsFátima García-Villén, Esperanza Carazo, Ana Borrego-Sánchez, Rita Sánchez-Espejo, Pilar Cerezo, César Viseras and Carola Aguzzi7. Clay minerals for pharmaceutical waste water treatmentPo-Hsiang Chang, Binoy Sarkar, Wei-Teh Jiang and Zhaohui Li8. Recent advances in layered clays-intercalated polymer nanohybrids: Synthesis strategies, properties and their applicationsKakarla Raghava Reddya, Ch. Venkata Reddy, B. Babu, K. Ravindranadh, S. Naveen and A. V. Raghu 9. Characteristics of clay minerals relevant to bioremediation of environmental contaminated systemsUzochukwu C. Ugochukwu10. Clay minerals and zeolites for radioactive waste immobilization and containment: a concise overviewPanagiotis Misaelides11. Energy storage materials from clay minerals and zeolite-like structuresAntonio Gil and Miguel A. Vicente12. Zeolites and modified clays in environmentally sustainable building materials Chiara Molinari, Chiara Zanelli and Michele Dondi13. Clay minerals and zeolites for environmentally sustainable agricultureKM Manjaiah, Raj Mukhopadhyay, Ranjan Paul, S.C.Datta, P. Kumararaja and Binoy Sarkar