Electron diffraction study of the structural features of kaolinites

The structural variations of kaolinites have been investigated based on oblique-texture electron diffraction patterns. The features of manifestation of the 2D lattice of kaolinite layers in the geometry of the 20l and 13l reflections have been revealed. The manifestation of violations in the regular alternation of layers in kaolinites in the diffraction patterns has been analyzed using a numerical simulation of the diffraction profiles along the first (02l, 11l) and second (20l, 13l) ellipses of oblique-texture electron diffraction patterns. The simulation was performed for finite sequences of ten layers using the statistical Markov model in the quasihomogeneous approximation. It is shown that oblique-texture electron diffraction patterns can be used to reveal the coexistence of two phases with different structural perfections and particle morphologies in kaolinite samples.