Intercalation chemistry of layered zeolite precursor IPC-1P

Abstract

Lamellar zeolites like layered IPC-1 precursor, IPC-1P, offer unprecedented opportunities for creating diversity of more open zeolite structures prepared post-synthesis by expanding and modifying the interlamellar space. The present study investigates the intercalation chemistry of IPC-1P as a possible way to produce new expanded materials. Layered precursor IPC-1P obtained by ‘top-down’ modification of UTL germanosilicate was intercalated with different organic agents followed by stabilization and pillaring. Prepared materials were evaluated by X-ray powder diffraction, sorption of nitrogen and scanning electron microscopy. The d-spacing of intercalated precursor – IPC-1P (organic) – was in the range between 1.04 and 3.63nm. Calcination of intercalated precursors provided mainly IPC-2 and IPC-4 zeolites. We demonstrate that stabilization of IPC-1P with organic species can produce new, more expanded structures than previously known IPC-2 zeolite. The pillaring of IPC-1P intercalated with the N-adamantyltrimethylammonium cations and N-alkyl-trimethylammonium cations (with octyl-, dodecyl- and hexadecyl-chains) leads to materials with different but controlled textural properties (BET area, pore size distribution and volume). Pillared IPC-1PI materials exhibit BET areas in the range of 497–1006m2/g with pore sizes between micro- and small mesopores. The study shows that introducing of appropriate organics in between the layers of IPC-1P is the first step to produce new zeolitic architectures with variable textural properties, which are potential catalysts for transformation of bulky molecules.