Synthesis of Silicalite-1 Zeolite Membranes Under Microwave Heating

Silicalite-1 membranes supported on macroporous Al2O3 tubes were prepared by in-situ crystallization and secondary growth method under microwave-assisted closed system. The influences of crystallization time and temperature on properties of the as-prepared membranes were investigated. Results show that by in-situ crystallization at different temperatures it’s hardly to obtain uniform membranes on the poor supports, while by secondary growth method dense and well-intergrown silicalite-1 membranes with thickness of 2 μm on seeded supports can be obtained even at 393 K for 60 min. At 423 K, 30 min was enough to synthesize well-intergrown and uniform zeolite membrane under microwave heating. These silicalite-1 membranes also exhibit well hydrogen permeation performance. The effect of temperature was more remarkable than that of time evaluated from the morphology difference of these membranes.