Synthesis of stable suspensions of discrete colloidal zeolite (Na, TPA)ZSM-5 crystals

• Synthesis of zeolite ZSM-5 in the form of stable suspensions of colloidal crystals from clear homogeneous solutions has been achieved from synthesis mixtures with low sodium and high TPAOH concentrations. The ultimate size of the discrete crystals is in the range 130-230 nm with a narrow particle size distribution. The crystal growth was monitored by the direct method of dynamic light scattering. An increasing alumina concentration was found to decrease the crystal growth rate, the number of crystals produced, and the ZSM-5 yield. The final crystal size was found to increase with increasing alumina concentration in the synthesis solution. The number of crystals produced decreased with an increased alkalinity in contradiction to what has been found for colloidal TPA-silicalite-1. This together with the presence of the two competing processes, crystal growth and crystal dissolution, which are both catalyzed by hydroxide ions, suggests the presence of an optimum alkalinity (depending on the alumina concentration).

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