Clay minerals are called secondary silicates, because they are formed from the

weathering of primary rock-forming minerals. Clay minerals occur in small particle

sizes (<0.002 mm) and are very fine grained and flake shaped; they are separated
from sand, gravel and silt due to the negative electrical load on the crystal edges
and positive electrical load on the face. Clay minerals consist of two basic
structures. First, silica oxygen is formed through the bonding of silicon ions to the
oxygen atoms on all four sides (tetrahedron). Second, an octagon forms with
aluminum and magnesium ions coordinated on eight-sides with oxygen and
hydroxyl ions (octahedron). All clay minerals are formed from octahedral and
tetrahedral sheets with certain types of cations, which are in various forms and
connected to each other in a certain system.