(269h) Fabrication of Bifunctional Acid-Base Catalyst By Organic Pillared MFI Nanosheets

Organic pillared MFI zeolite has been synthesized by detemplation of organic templates and intercalation of arylic silsesquioxane (1,4-bis(triethoxysilyl)benzene, BTEB) molecules between multilamellar MFI nanosheets. The acid extraction and UV light radiation were sequentially employed for removal of organic templates located not only between MFI layers but also in the zeolite micropores. The removal of organic templates by non-thermal calcination method prevents the condensation of external silanol groups of zeolitic nanosheets stacked next to each other, which allows intercalation of BTEB molecules between the zeolitic nanosheets and their successive reaction with the silanol groups to form the organic pillared zeolite structure. A post-treatment amination of the resultant zeolite sample introduced amino groups in the organic BTEB pillars. The acid sites from the zeolite framework aluminium and basic sites from the amino groups in BTEB pillars endow organic pillared MFI bifunctionality for cascade catalytic reactions. The synthesis of organic pillared MFI is a new addition to the structural modifications of lamellar zeolite with more open structures for processing bulky molecules. The resultant inorganic-organic hybrid zeolite structure creates new opportunities for potential applications of lamellar zeolites with tailored properties.