Investigation of tertiary butyl alcohol as template for the synthesis of ZSM-5 zeolite

The synthesis of ZSM-5 zeolite in the presence of tertiary butyl alcohol (TBA) in aqueous medium was investigated. It was found that well crystallized zeolite of the ZSM-5 type was formed from the sol of silica and sodium aluminate in the presence of an aqueous solution of tertiary butyl alcohol at the temperature of 180 A degrees C in the course of 2 days hydrothermal reaction followed by 1 day aging time, with molar ratios of 1.5 TBA: 50.3 SiO2: 1.0 Al2O3: 6.2 Na2O and 1248 H2O. The proposed procedure yields pure ZSM-5 zeolites with high surface area and crystallinity confirmed by X-ray diffraction pattern, FTIR spectrum and SEM observations. The acidity strength was measured by NH3-TPD analysis and application to the abatement of phenol in the water was also studied. The results proved TBA as an excellent and novel structure directing agent for the preparation of ZSM-5 zeolites.