| abstract |
An organophilic clay gellant useful for gelling organic liquids is disclosed which comprises the reaction product of (a) a smectite-type clay having a cation exchange capacity of at least 75 milliequivalents per 100 grams of said clay; (b) a primary anion selected from the group consisting of anions derived from organic sulfonic acids, alkylsulfates and mixtures thereof containing at least one lineal or branched alkyl group having greater than 9 carbon atoms, aromatic sulfonic acids and mixtures thereof; (c) a secondary anion different from said primary anion and selected from the group consisting of anions derived from organic acids having a pKa of less than about 11.0 and mixtures thereof; and (d) an organic cation is an amount sufficient to satisfy the cation in exchange capacity of said clay and the cationic activity of the primary and secondary anions wherein the resulting organic cation-organic anion complexes are intercalated with the smectite-type clay and wherein the combination of said primary and secondary anion synergistically increases the ease of dispersion of said organophilic clay gellant in an organic liquid. |