Formation of NaY zeolite membrane: influence of intermediate layer and its characterization

Abstract

In the synthesis process of zeolite membranes, the zeolites crystals are crystallized and grow during crystallization period to form polycrystalline film.Secondary growth method is an effective method to synthesis high quality zeolite membranes which involves two main steps which are coating and hydrothermal treatment (HT) synthesis. There are several problems associated with the coating process in secondary growth method such as lack of good adherence of the seeds, rough surface of the support, and thermal mismatch between the zeolite seeds and supports during hydrothermal process. In order to solve these issues, an intermediate layer (buffer layer) could be applied between the support and the seeds layer hence to reduce the defects forms during the hydrothermal treatment (HT) synthesis process. In current study, two different types of intermediate layer were studied and results were compared in terms of zeolite seeds coverage on the surface of the support and zeolite layer formed during subsequent hydrothermal treatment (HT) to form zeolite membranes. The formed zeolite membranes were characterized with X-Ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-Ray spectroscopy (EDX).