Hierarchical Faujasite-Type Zeolite for Molecular Decontamination

The applicability of porous material in different fields such as adsorption, is based on the matching between the size of the pore and that of the molecule under consideration. Hierarchical zeolites are advanced materials possessing higher adsorption capacities compared to conventional zeolites due to their highest porous volume. Herein, the synthesis of faujasite (FAU) type zeolites with nanosheet morphology are reported and their adsorption capacity determined by thermogravimetric using n-hexane as a probe molecule. The adsorption performances of these FAU nanosheets where then compared to those of conventional FAU zeolite microcrystals. The presence of defaults in the nanosheet material reduces the microporous volume and resulted in a lower adsorption capacity of n-hexane molecules in the crystalline microposity compared to the microcrystals (151 vs. 181 mg/g). However the presence of mesoporosity in nanosheets allowed to increase the total n-hexane adsorption capacity to reach a higher value than the one observed for microcrystals (219 vs. 181 mg/g).