The deintercalation of hydrazine-intercalated kaolinite has been followed using a combination of X-ray diffraction and diffuse reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Upon intercalation of the kaolinite with hydrazine, the kaolinite layers are expanded to 10.66 A and remain expanded for up to 22 h upon exposure to moist air. Only upon deintercalation are the peak at 10.39 A and a minor peak at 9.6 A observed. Complete deintercalation takes up to 18 days more. Upon intercalation with hydrazine an intense band is observed at 3628 cm(-1) and is attributed to the inner-surface hydroxyls hydrogen bonded to the hydrazine, which upon deintercalation decreased in intensity. This rate of deintercalation is affected by the presence or absence of moist air. Deintercalation in the presence of water vapor results in the observation of two additional bands at 3550 and 3598 cm(-1), which are attributed to the hydroxyl stretching modes of adsorbed water during deintercalation. The intensity of NH stretching vibrations observed at 3360, 3300, and 3200 cm(-1) also decrease in intensity with deintercalation time. Changes in the hydroxyl deformation modes of kaolinite in the 915 cm(-1) region and in the HNH deformation modes show strong interactions between the kaolinite surface and the inserting hydrazine molecule.