Dealumination of Nanosized Zeolites Y

Abstract

The dealumination of nanosized zeolites is an important scientific problem, which should be solved to improve the activity of catalysts based on this zeolite in a broad range of heterogeneous catalytic reactions, particularly in commercial processes. However, the smaller the required size of the synthesized crystals, the lower the Si/Al ratio and the lower the degree of dealumination of this material can be achieved. In this study, the dealumination of zeolites Y with a crystal size of 50–1100 nm by treatment with ammonium hexafluorosilicate and steam heat treatment is discussed. It is shown that the dealumination with ammonium hexafluorosilicate is a “gentler” method in terms of structure preservation, whereas the dealumination by steam heat treatment provides a higher Si/Al ratio in the products; however, this method is inapplicable for crystals smaller than 500 nm, because it leads to the complete degradation of the structure. However, nanosized crystals can be dealuminated by treating with ammonium hexafluorosilicate. In this case, the degree of dealumination is close to 40%. A significant disadvantage of this method is the formation of a SiO₂ film on the crystal surface; this feature substantially restricts the use of the ammonium hexafluorosilicate treatment in the synthesis of cracking catalysts.