A review on ionothermal synthesis of zeolites and zeotype materials

Abstract

Known as green inorganic products and environmentally beneficial, ionic liquids (ILs) are increasingly used in the ionothermal synthesis of zeolites and zeotype materials compared to the hydrothermal method. This safe and successful process offers new opportunities to produce several molecular sieves with different morphologies and structures for promising applications.
In this review, we summarize the history of the most successful phases of zeolites and zeotype materials, with different structures such as AEL, AEI, AFI, AST, ATS, CHA, -CLO, ITW, LEV, LTA, MFI, MTN, MTT, SOD, TON, IRR, and STW, from ILs discovery until 2022. The use of the ionothermal method compared to the hydrothermal route is evaluated and reported in this paper, besides synthesis parameters affecting the final product formation, such as IL dosage, cation size and shape, water content, (P, Si, F, IL/Al) ratios, crystallization time and temperature, mineralizing agent, Me/Al ratio, the addition of a secondary template (co-SDA), the use of IL as both SDA and solvent, competition in forming the framework, and the use of eutectic mixture and deep eutectic solvent (DES). 
Furthermore, we collected the various applications of these materials and highlighted the advantages of the ionothermal process, offering a comprehensive understanding of this topic.

Application of ionic liquid extractant in enhanced separation of 2-propanol-n-hexane azeotrope system

“…Among these techniques, liquid-liquid extraction and extractive distillation recognized as efficient methods, which are dictated by the selection of suitable extractants. In recent years, ILs, an environmentally friendly and effective extractants, have drawn intensive studies [11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18]. However, up to now, few studies have reported on the separation of 2-propanol and nhexane mixtures.…”

Revealing the journey of molecules and particles in heterogeneous, porous materials for cigarette filters

“…To minimize their inhalation, cigarette filters have been developed to utilize a variety of porous materials [4] such as fibrous cellulose [5], molecular sieves [6], resins, and molecularly imprinted polymers [7]. Ideally, the porous structures should allow good air permeation and minimize the passage of harmful substances; they are designed to block particulate matter like tar particles by size-dependent sieving, to arrest volatile molecules by specific or nonspecific adsorption, and to decompose the toxic targets into benign molecules on catalytically active sites [4,8]. It is highly desirable to understand the mass transport and adsorption/desorption of particles and molecules therein.…”