Rapid synthesis of fault-free GME zeolite

Abstract

Optimization of the synthesis of known zeolite structures and discovery of their new applications are continuously the hot topics in the field of zeolite chemistry. One of the typical examples is GME zeolite structure. Herein, we for the first time report a rapid synthesis of fault-free GME zeolite by the combined strategy of seeding and aging. The fault-free GME zeolite could be obtained at 160 °C for only 2.5 h. Various characterization techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) have been used, which shows that the obtained product has good crystallinity, perfect hexagonal morphology, fully 4-coordinated Al species plus its fault-free feature. In addition, after the post-treatment of as-made GME zeolite, Na-GME zeolite with large BET surface area and high porosity could be obtained successfully. More importantly, the obtained Na-GME zeolite is firstly used for CO2 capture, giving the high CO2 adsorption of 5.37 mmol/g and excellently selective CO2 adsorption from CO2/N2 (15/85, v/v) with separation coefficient of 58.8. The fault-free GME zeolite used for CO2 capture might be potentially of significance for its industrial application.