Changes in Structural and Electronic Properties of the Zeolite Framework Induced by Extraframework Al and La in H-USY and La(x)NaY: A 29Si and 27Al MAS NMR and 27Al MQ MAS NMR Study

Achieving acetone efficient deep decomposition by strengthening reactants adsorption and activation over difunctional Au(OH)Kx/hierarchical MFI catalyst

Realizing the simultaneous adsorption and activation of O₂ and reactants over supported noble metal catalysts is crucial for the oxidation of organic hydrocarbons. Herein, we report a facile one-step ethylene glycol reduction method to synthesize difunctional Au(OH)K_x sites, which were anchored on a hierarchical hollow MFI support and adopted for acetone decomposition. The alkali ion-associated adjacent surface hydroxyl groups were coordinated with Au nanoparticles, resulting in partially oxidized Au¹⁺ sites with improved dispersion. The results obtained from exclusive ex situ and in situ experiments illustrated that the proper content of K and hydroxyl groups significantly enhanced the adsorption of surface O₂ and acetone molecules around the Au sites simultaneously, whereas the excess K species inhibited the catalytic performance by blocking the pore structure and decreasing the acidity of catalysts. The Au(OH)K_0.7/h-MFI catalyst exhibited the highest efficiency for acetone oxidation, over which 1500 ppm acetone can be completely oxidized at just 280 °C with an extremely low activation energy of 32.5 kJ mol^-1. The carbonate species were detected as the main intermediates during acetone decomposition over the difunctional Au(OH)K_x sites through a Langmuir - Hinshelwood (L - H) mechanism. This finding paves the way for designing and constructing efficient functional active sites for the complete oxidation of hydrocarbons.

Emerging Analytical Methods to Characterize Zeolite-Based Materials

Zeolites and zeolitic materials are, through their use in numerous conventional and sustainable applications, very important to our daily lives, including to foster the necessary transition to a more circular society. The characterization of zeolite-based materials has a tremendous history and a great number of applications and properties of these materials have been discovered in the past decades. This review focuses on recently developed novel as well as more conventional techniques applied with the aim of better understanding zeolite-based materials. Recently explored analytical methods, e.g. atom probe tomography, scanning transmission X-ray microscopy, confocal fluorescence microscopy and photo-induced force microscopy, are discussed on their important contributions to the better understanding of zeolites as they mainly focus on the micro- to nanoscale chemical imaging and the revelation of structure–composition–performance relationships. Some other techniques have a long and established history, e.g. nuclear magnetic resonance, infrared, neutron scattering, electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction techniques, and have gone through increasing developments allowing the techniques to discover new and important features in zeolite-based materials. Additional to the increasing application of these methods, multiple techniques are nowadays used to study zeolites under working conditions (i.e. the in situ/operando mode of analysis) providing new insights in reaction and deactivation mechanisms.

Revealing the Synergistic Deactivation Mechanism of Hydrothermal Aging and SO2 Poisoning on Cu/SSZ-13 under SCR Condition

In real-world application, Cu/SSZ-13 simultaneously suffers severe deactivation from hydrothermal aging and SO₂ poisoning during the periodic regeneration of diesel particulate filter (DPF). Herein, we first investigated the synergistic deactivation mechanism of hydrothermal aging and SO₂ poisoning on Cu/SSZ-13 under SCR condition. Hydrothermal aging alone induces more severe degradation of selective catalytic reduction (SCR) performance than SO₂ poisoning alone, while the presence of SO₂ during hydrothermal aging causes further worse SCR performance compared with hydrothermal aging alone. Hydrothermal aging not only damages Si-OH-Al sites, particularly in four-membered ring (4MR) of the CHA cage, but also brings the conversion of ZCuOH, leading to the formation of inactive CuO/CuAlO_x species. By contrast, SO₂ poisoning alone is more prone to promote the transformation of ZCuOH to Z₂Cu. Synergistic deactivation of hydrothermal aging and SO₂ poisoning would exacerbate the damage of Si-OH-Al sites and then the formation of CuO/CuAlO_x species. These results are expected to assist the knowledge-based catalyst design for diesel aftertreatment applications.

Zeolite-Tailored Active Site Proximity for the Efficient Production of Pentanoic Biofuels

Biofuel production can alleviate reliance on fossil resources and thus carbon dioxide emission. Hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) refers collectively to a series of important biorefinery processes to produce biofuels. Here, well-dispersed and ultra-small Ru metal nanoclusters (ca. 1 nm), confined within the micropores of zeolite Y, provide the required active site intimacy, which significantly boosts the chemoselectivity towards the production of pentanoic biofuels in the direct, one-pot HDO of neat ethyl levulinate. Crucial for improving catalyst stability is the addition of La, which upholds the confined proximity by preventing zeolite lattice deconstruction during catalysis. We have established and extended an understanding of the "intimacy criterion" in catalytic biomass valorization. These findings bring new understanding of HDO reactions over confined proximity sites, leading to potential application for pentanoic biofuels in biomass conversion.

High-Field One-Dimensional and Two-Dimensional 27Al Magic-Angle Spinning Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Study of θ-, δ-, and γ-Al2O3 Dominated Aluminum Oxides: Toward Understanding the Al Sites in γ-Al2O3

Herein, a detailed analysis was carried out using high-field (19.9 T) ²⁷Al magic-angle spinning (MAS) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) on three specially prepared aluminum oxide samples where the γ-, δ-, and θ-Al₂O₃ phases are dominantly expressed through careful control of the synthesis conditions. Specifically, two-dimensional (2D) multiquantum (MQ) MAS ²⁷Al was used to obtain high spectral resolution, which provided a guide for analyzing quantitative 1D ²⁷Al NMR spectra. Six aluminum sites were resolved in the 2D MQ MAS NMR spectra, and seven aluminum sites were required to fit the 1D spectra. A set of octahedral and tetrahedral peaks with well-defined quadrupolar line shapes was observed in the θ-phase dominant sample and was unambiguously assigned to the θ-Al₂O₃ phase. The distinct line shapes related to the θ-Al₂O₃ phase provided an opportunity for effectively deconvoluting the more complex spectrum obtained from the δ-Al₂O₃ dominant sample, allowing the peaks/quadrupolar parameters related to the δ-Al₂O₃ phase to be extracted. The results show that the δ-Al₂O₃ phase contains three distinct Al_O sites and three distinct Al_T sites. This detailed Al site structural information offers a powerful way of analyzing the most complex γ-Al₂O₃ spectrum. It is found that the γ-Al₂O₃ phase consists of Al sites with local structures similar to those found in the δ-Al₂O₃ and θ-Al₂O₃ phases albeit with less ordering. Spin-lattice relaxation time measurement further confirms the disordering of the lattice. Collectively, this study uniquely assigns ²⁷Al features in transition aluminas, offering a simplified method to quantify complex mixtures of aluminum sites in transition alumina samples.

Matrix Effects in a Fluid Catalytic Cracking Catalyst Particle: Influence on Structure, Acidity, and Accessibility

Matrix effects in a fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) catalyst have been studied in terms of structure, accessibility, and acidity. An extensive characterization study into the structural and acidic properties of a FCC catalyst, its individual components (i.e., zeolite H‐Y, binder (boehmite/silica) and kaolin clay), and two model FCC catalyst samples containing only two components (i.e., zeolite‐binder and binder‐clay) was performed at relevant conditions. This allowed the drawing of conclusions about the role of each individual component, describing their mutual physicochemical interactions, establishing structure‐acidity relationships, and determining matrix effects in FCC catalyst materials. This has been made possible by using a wide variety of characterization techniques, including temperature‐programmed desorption of ammonia, infrared spectroscopy in combination with CO as probe molecule, transmission electron microscopy, X‐ray diffraction, Ar physisorption, and advanced nuclear magnetic resonance. By doing so it was, for example, revealed that a freshly prepared spray‐dried FCC catalyst appears as a physical mixture of its individual components, but under typical riser reactor conditions, the interaction between zeolite H‐Y and binder material is significant and mobile aluminum migrates and inserts from the binder into the defects of the zeolite framework, thereby creating additional Brønsted acid sites and restoring the framework structure.

Structure and Catalytic Characterization of a Second Framework Al(IV) Site in Zeolite Catalysts Revealed by NMR at 35.2 T

Ultrahigh field ²⁷Al{¹H} 2D correlation NMR experiments demonstrate that at least two framework Al(IV) sites with hydroxyl groups can exist in acidic zeolite catalysts in their dehydrated and catalytically active states. In addition to the known Al(IV) at the framework bridging acid site (BAS), a new site created by a second tetrahedral Al atom and its hydroxyl group protons in zeolite HZSM-5 is clearly resolved at 35.2 T field strengths, enabled by recently developed series-connected hybrid (SCH) magnet technology. Coupled with computational modeling, extensive ²⁷Al MQMAS experiments at multiple field strengths, and ¹H MAS NMR experiments, these data indicate that this second tetrahedrally coordinated Al site (denoted Al(IV)-2) experiences an increased chemical shift and unique quadrupolar parameters relative to the BAS in both dehydrated and hydrated states. These new experimental data, supported by computational and catalytic reaction work, indicate that the second site arises from partially bonded framework (SiO)_4-n-Al(OH)_n species that significantly increase catalyst reactivity in benzene hydride-transfer and n-hexane cracking reactions. Al(IV)-2 sites result either from framework crystallization defects or from incomplete postsynthetic hydrolysis of a framework Al, prior to the formation of extraframework Al. Populations of this second acidic proton site created by the Al(IV)-2 species are shown to be controlled via postsynthetic catalyst treatments, should be general to different catalyst structures, and significantly enhance catalyst reactivity in the cited probe reactions when they are present. The results herein communicate the highest magnetic field strength data on active zeolite catalyst structures to date and enable for the first time the detection of Al and H association on a dry HZSM-5 catalyst, i.e., under conditions representative of typical end-use processes.

Nickel Poisoning of a Cracking Catalyst Unravelled by Single-Particle X-ray Fluorescence-Diffraction-Absorption Tomography

Ni contamination from crude oil in the fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) process is one of the primary sources of catalyst deactivation, thereby promoting dehydrogenation-hydrogenation and speeding up coke growth. Herein, single-particle X-ray fluorescence, diffraction and absorption (μXRF-μXRD-μXAS) tomography is used in combination with confocal fluorescence microscopy (CFM) after thiophene staining to spatially resolve Ni interaction with catalyst components and study zeolite degradation, including the processes of dealumination and Brønsted acid sites distribution changes. The comparison between a Ni-lean particle, exposed to hydrotreated feedstock, and a Ni-rich one, exposed to non-hydrotreated feedstock, reveals a preferential interaction of Ni, found in co-localization with Fe, with the γ-Al₂ O₃ matrix, leading to the formation of spinel-type hotspots. Although both particles show similar surface zeolite degradation, the Ni-rich particle displays higher dealumination and a clear Brønsted acidity drop.

IR and NMR Studies of the Status of Al and Acid Sites in Desilicated Zeolite Y

The desilication of zeolite Y (of Si/Al = 31) that was previously dealuminated by steaming and acid treatment was studied. Desilication of zeolites of high Si/Al module in alkali solutions extracts both Si and Al from zeolite crystals, but while Si remains in solution, Al is reinserted into the zeolite grain. The main goal of our study was to follow the status of Al reinserted into zeolite during the desilication procedure, and its role in the formation of acid sites of the Brønsted and Lewis types. The properties of Al were followed by 27Al MAS NMR spectroscopy (for parent samples and zeolites treated either with NaOH or NaOH/tetrabutylammonium hydroxide), whereas the acid sites generated in the final stages were studied by IR spectroscopy with NH3 and CO as probe molecules. In non-desilicated zeolite, most of the Al was in a typically zeolitic tetrahedral coordination, while both NMR and quantitative IR studies of NH3 sorption evidenced that Al that was extracted by desilication and was subsequently reinserted had a tetrahedral coordination similar to amorphous aluminosilicates and showed an ion exchange ability. After the exchange of Na+ to NH4+ and decomposition of NH4+ ions, reinserted Al forms generated protonic sites from which some condensed at higher temperatures producing Lewis acid sites (with stoichiometry typical for zeolites i.e., the condensation of two protonic sites produces one Lewis site) but some other kept their character.

Rare-earth ion exchanged Cu-SSZ-13 zeolite from organotemplate-free synthesis with enhanced hydrothermal stability in NH3-SCR of NOx

Rare-earth Y exchanged Al-rich Cu-CHA shows significantly improved hydrothermal stability in NH₃-SCR reaction.

Salt Water-Triggered Ionic Cross-Linking of Polymer Composites by Controlled Release of Functional Ions

A composite that undergoes ionic cross-linking in the presence of salt water is presented as a viable strategy for the development of chemically responsive materials. The permeation of salt water through the composite activates embedded inorganic fillers, resulting in the release of functional ions and subsequent cross-linking with the functional groups of the polymer matrix. The release of a cross-linking agent from the inorganic filler and composite is evaluated along with the impact of the cross-linking on composite properties. The new methodology is then coupled with a dopamine-functionalized polymer in order to evaluate the potential of this approach for environmentally triggered self-healing materials.

Influence of Levulinic Acid Hydrogenation on Aluminum Coordination in Zeolite-Supported Ruthenium Catalysts: A 27 Al 3QMAS Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Study

The influence of a highly oxygenated, polar protic reaction medium, that is, levulinic acid in 2-ethylhexanoic acid, on the dealumination of two zeolite-supported ruthenium catalysts, namely Ru/H-β and Ru/H-ZSM-5, has been investigated by 27 Al triple-quantum magic-angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (3QMAS NMR). Upon use of these catalysts in the hydrogenation of levulinic acid, the heterogeneity in aluminum speciation is found to increase for both Ru/H-ZSM-5 and Ru/H-β. For Ru/H-ZSM-5, the symmetric, tetrahedral framework aluminum species (FAL) were found to be mainly converted into distorted tetrahedral FAL species, with limited loss of aluminum to the solution by leaching. A severe loss of both FAL and extra-framework aluminum (EFAL) species into the liquid phase was observed for Ru/H-β instead. The large decrease in tetrahedral FAL species, in particular, results in a significant decrease in strong acid sites, as corroborated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). This decrease in acidity, evidence of the inferior stability of the strongly acidic sites in Ru/H-β relative to Ru/H-ZSM-5 under the applied conditions, is considered as the main reason for differences seen in catalyst performance.

Highly selective oxidation of styrene to benzaldehyde over a tailor-made cobalt oxide encapsulated zeolite catalyst

A tailor-made catalyst with cobalt oxide particles encapsulated into ZSM-5 zeolites (Co₃O₄@HZSM-5) was prepared via a hydrothermal method with the conventional impregnated Co₃O₄/SiO₂ catalyst as the precursor and Si source. Various characterization results show that the Co₃O₄@HZSM-5 catalyst has well-organized structure with Co₃O₄ particles compatibly encapsulated in the zeolite crystals. The Co₃O₄@HZSM-5 catalyst was employed as an efficient catalyst for the selective oxidation of styrene to benzaldehyde with hydrogen peroxide as a green and economic oxidant. The effect of various reaction conditions including reaction time, reaction temperature, different kinds of solvents, styrene/H₂O₂ molar ratio and catalyst dosage on the catalytic performance were systematically investigated. Under the optimized reaction condition, the yield of benzaldehyde can achieve 78.9% with 96.8% styrene conversion and 81.5% benzaldehyde selectivity. Such an excellent catalytic performance can be attributed to the synergistic effect between the confined reaction environment and the proper acidic property. In addition, the reaction mechanism with Co₃O₄@HZSM-5 as the catalyst for the selective oxidation of styrene to benzaldehyde was reasonably proposed.

Mechanism of byproducts formation in the isobutane/butene alkylation on HY zeolites

Submicron-size HY zeolites with a particles size of 200–700 nm were synthesized employing a crystal precipitation method in this study. The catalytic activity for the isobutane/butene alkylation was evaluated. The results indicated that butene conversion was above 90% and the selectivity of expected products (C8) was nearly at 90% within 72 h. The micropores-blocking and coverage of acid sites resulting from high hydrocarbons increased the difficulty for the diffusion of products to the bulk and inhibited the adsorption of reactant on activity sites, which caused deactivation of catalyst. The ultimate C12 content in alkylate oil, stemmed from trimerization of butene, was reduced via the addition reaction with butene to C16 and the cracking to C5–C7. The formation mechanisms and transformation processes of byproducts in alkylate oil revealed that the source of C9–C11 switched from cracking of C16+ to the addition of C5–C7 carbocations with butene when acid sites concentration was reduced by accumulating oligomers.

Submicron-size HY zeolites with a particles size of 200–700 nm were synthesized employing a crystal precipitation method in this study.

Selective conversion of lactic acid to acrylic acid over alkali and alkaline-earth metal co-modified NaY zeolites

A high AA selectivity of 84% was achieved through an environmentally friendly and sustainable catalytic process.

Impact of hierarchical pore structure on the catalytic performances of MFI zeolites modified by ZnO for the conversion of methanol to aromatics

The increase in the pore hierarchy of ZnO/hierarchical H-ZSM-5 catalysts increased the catalyst stability and the yield of aromatics, particularly BTX, from methanol.

Structural and kinetic changes to small-pore Cu-zeolites after hydrothermal aging treatments and selective catalytic reduction of NOx with ammonia

Cu in aged zeolites changes structure during SCR.

Effect of vanadium contamination on the framework and micropore structure of ultra stable Y-zeolite

Y-zeolites are the main component of fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) catalyst for conversion of crude petroleum to products of high demand including transportation fuel. We investigated effects of vanadium which is present as one of the impurities in FCC feedstock on the framework and micropore structure of ultra-stable (US) Y-zeolite. The zeolite samples were prepared and characterized using standard techniques including: (1) X-ray diffraction, (2) N2 adsorption employing non local density functional theory method, NLDFT, (3) Transmittance and Pyridine FTIR, (4) Transmittance electron microscopy (TEM), and (5) (27)Al and (29)Si MAS-NMR. Results revealed that in the presence of steam, vanadium caused excessive evolution of non inter-crystalline mesopores and structural damage. The evolved mesopore size averaged about 25.0nm at 0.5wt.% vanadium loading, far larger than mesopore size in zeolitic materials with improved hydrothermal stability and performance for FCC catalyst. A mechanism of mesopore formation based on accelerated dealumination has been proposed and discussed. Vanadium immobilization experiments conducted to mitigate vanadium migration into the framework clearly showed vanadium is mobile at reaction conditions. From the results, interaction of vanadium with the passivator limits and decreases mobility and activity of vanadium into inner cavities of the zeolite capable of causing huge structure breakdown and acid sites destruction. This study therefore deepens insight into the causes of alteration in activity and selectivity of vanadium contaminated catalyst and hints on a possible mechanism of passivation in vanadium passivated FCC catalyst.

Impact of chabazite SSZ-13 textural properties and chemical composition on CO2 adsorption applications

A narrow pore zeolite was synthesized with different Si/Al ratios and micro- to nanoparticle size where both played an important role in CO₂ adsorption.

Fluid catalytic cracking: recent developments on the grand old lady of zeolite catalysis

Fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) is one of the major conversion technologies in the oil refinery industry, and the largest commercial catalytic process that uses zeolite materials.

Fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) is one of the major conversion technologies in the oil refinery industry. FCC currently produces the majority of the world's gasoline, as well as an important fraction of propylene for the polymer industry. In this critical review, we give an overview of the latest trends in this field of research. These trends include ways to make it possible to process either very heavy or very light crude oil fractions as well as to co-process biomass-based oxygenates with regular crude oil fractions, and convert these more complex feedstocks in an increasing amount of propylene and diesel-range fuels. After providing some general background of the FCC process, including a short history as well as details on the process, reactor design, chemical reactions involved and catalyst material, we will discuss several trends in FCC catalysis research by focusing on ways to improve the zeolite structure stability, propylene selectivity and the overall catalyst accessibility by (a) the addition of rare earth elements and phosphorus, (b) constructing hierarchical pores systems and (c) the introduction of new zeolite structures. In addition, we present an overview of the state-of-the-art micro-spectroscopy methods for characterizing FCC catalysts at the single particle level. These new characterization tools are able to explain the influence of the harsh FCC processing conditions (e.g. steam) and the presence of various metal poisons (e.g. V, Fe and Ni) in the crude oil feedstocks on the 3-D structure and accessibility of FCC catalyst materials.

Zeolite Y Adsorbents with High Vapor Uptake Capacity and Robust Cycling Stability for Potential Applications in Advanced Adsorption Heat Pumps

Modular and compact adsorption heat pumps (AHPs) promise an energy-efficient alternative to conventional vapor compression based heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems. A key element in the advancement of AHPs is the development of adsorbents with high uptake capacity, fast intracrystalline diffusivity and durable hydrothermal stability. Herein, the ion exchange of NaY zeolites with ingoing Mg²⁺ ions is systematically studied to maximize the ion exchange degree (IED) for improved sorption performance. It is found that beyond an ion exchange threshold of 64.1%, deeper ion exchange does not benefit water uptake capacity or characteristic adsorption energy, but does enhance the vapor diffusivity. In addition to using water as an adsorbate, the uptake properties of Mg,Na-Y zeolites were investigated using 20 wt.% MeOH aqueous solution as a novel anti-freeze adsorbate, revealing that the MeOH additive has an insignificant influence on the overall sorption performance. We also demonstrated that the labscale synthetic scalability is robust, and that the tailored zeolites scarcely suffer from hydrothermal stability even after successive 108-fold adsorption/desorption cycles. The samples were analyzed using N₂ sorption, ²⁷Al/²⁹Si MAS NMR spectroscopy, ICP-AES, dynamic vapor sorption, SEM, Fick's 2^nd law and D-R equation regressions. Among these, close examination of sorption isotherms for H₂O and N₂ adsorbates allows us to decouple and extract some insightful information underlying the complex water uptake phenomena. This work shows the promising performance of our modified zeolites that can be integrated into various AHP designs for buildings, electronics, and transportation applications.