clay mineral

noun

1. any of a group of hydrous aluminum silicate minerals, as kaolinite, illite, and montmorillonite, that constitute the major portion of most clays.

clay mineral

noun

1. any of a group of minerals consisting of hydrated aluminium silicates: the major constituents of clays

Word History and Origins

Origin of clay mineral¹

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

By their estimates, the clay mineral could have increased the preservation of organic carbon by less than one-tenth of a percent.

From Science Daily

MIT geologists have found that a clay mineral on the seafloor, called smectite, has a surprisingly powerful ability to sequester carbon over millions of years.

From Science Daily

With time, as the soft tissue decayed, a white-colored clay mineral called kaolinite filled the void left by the brain.

From New York Times

For the months that Korean spas were shut down during the pandemic, customers were aching to go back to their reliable sources of relaxation and escape — whether it was getting a body scrub; alternating between the hot tub and a cold bath; or lying in sauna rooms lined with gold, clay, mineral salt or ice.

From Los Angeles Times

Ménez and colleagues propose that saponite, an iron-containing clay mineral that they detected, and which is reported14 to be a catalyst for the synthesis of organic compounds and the reduction of N2 to ammonia, might be involved in tryptophan synthesis.

From Nature