The results of a comparative study of the features of the material (chemical and mineralogical) composition and some surface characteristics of the enriched form of clay from the Polyana deposit subjected to activation by sulfuric acid treatment, as well as by exposure to IR- and UV-radiation are presented in this article. The initial clay material is accessible to polymineral rock with a predominance of montmorillonite hydroaluminosilicate in its composition (up to 75 wt %). There is IR and UV exposure to a significant change in the incoming composition of the clay, not observed. When an enriched form of clay is exposed to a solution of sulfuric acid, the proportion of cations (in particular calcium) in the exchange complex of clay decreases. In this case, a compensatory effect of protons on broken bonds localized on the surface of clay minerals is observed, which leads to a decrease in the absolute value of the electrokinetic potential on the surface of clay particles. Under IR- and UV-exposure of the clay material, a shift in the ξ-potential to the region of negative values is observed, which can be explained by the weakening of the bonds of exchange cations with the crystal lattice of montmorillonite, and, as a result, a change in the composition and structure of the interlayer medium. It was revealed that both UV and IR exposure to Polyanskaya clay leads to a decrease in the content of the proportion of freely bound water in the structure of montmorillonite hydroaluminosilicate. At the same time, treatment with UV-radiation significantly reduces the amount of OH-groups on the surface of the mineral due to the formation of siloxane bridges.