Patent ID: 7829510

Claim:
A method for changing an aggregation potential of a metal oxide-containing surface comprising the step of: treating the metal oxide particles or surfaces with a composition comprising at least one surface acidifying agent and at least one surface modifying agent, where the acidifying agents acidify the particles or the surfaces producing surface hydroxyl groups (Sur-OH) and the surfacing modifying agents (A) converts a portion of the Sur-OH groups into active surfaces salts (Sur-O − -AH + ) resulting in a modification of an aggregation potential and/or zeta-potential of the particles or the surfaces, where the surface acidifying agents comprise sulfuric acid, phosphoric acid, hydrochloride acid, nitric acid, carboxylic acids, chlorated carboxylic acids, carbylsulfonic acids, or mixture or combinations thereof, where the carbyl group has between about 1 and 40 carbon atoms and the required hydrogen atoms to satisfy the valence and where one or more of the carbon atoms can be replaced by one or more hetero atoms selected from the group consisting of boron, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, sulfur or mixture or combinations thereof and where one or more of the hydrogen atoms can be replaced by one or more single valence atoms selected from the group consisting of fluorine, chlorine, bromine, iodine or mixtures or combinations thereof and where the surface modifying agents comprise primary, secondary or tertiary amines, primary, secondary, or tertiary phosphines, or mixtures or combinations thereof, where the amines have between about between about 1 and 40 carbon atoms and the required hydrogen atoms to satisfy the valence and where one or more of the carbon atoms can be replaced by one or more hetero atoms selected from the group consisting of boron, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, sulfur or mixture or combinations thereof and where one or more of the hydrogen atoms can be replaced by one or more single valence atoms selected from the group consisting of fluorine, chlorine, bromine, iodine or mixtures or combinations thereof, or mixture or combinations thereof.