The synthesis and characterization of aluminum-pillared rectorite were studied. The synthesis was conducted with both conventional heating and microwave irradiation. Microwave irradiation was found to enhance the intercalation and ion-exchange during synthesis, and to be able to produce the rectorite with a larger d001 and a better uniformity. The specific surface area is 180 m2/g and basal spacing is 3.2 nm. The texture change and thermal and hydrothermal stability of cross-linked rectorite were examined using XRD, FTIR, nitrogen-adsorption and TGA. The experimental results show that the aluminum-pillared rectorite, after calcined at 800 ℃ for 3 hours, can keep the basal aluminum-silicate texture and would not disperse in water at room or an elevated temperature. The aluminum-pillared rectorite shows a high specific surface area, good thermal and hydrothermal stability, and is promising in applications as catalyst carriers and adsorbents for waste treatment.