Cracking Zeolite Design

Cracking Zeolite Design

Author: ChemViews

Zeolites with micropores provide unique catalyst activity but lead to slow mass transfer of reactants and products. A hierarchical pore network would allow fast mass transfer from the surface of the zeolite crystal through large mesopores, while maintaining the selectivity of micropores.

Krijn de Jong and co-workers, Utrecht University, the Netherlands, have developed a zeolite with three pore sizes: micropores (ca. 1 nm), small mesopores (ca. 3 nm), and large mesopores (ca. 30 nm). They used commercially available zeolite H-Y that had been steamed and acid-leached. Base leaching was performed with NaOH(aq), followed by acid quenching. Subsequently, sodium ions were exchanged for ammonium ions, followed by calcination to obtain the zeolite.

The zeolite was characterized by X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. It was also shown to be suitable for hydrocracking under industrial conditions. It gave higher conversions to diesel and kerosene and less naphtha than a commercial catalyst.


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