Hierarchical Zeolites: Synthesis and Applications

Zeolites have been used extensively as industrial solid-acid catalysts in the oil refining and petrochemical industries due to their unique pore structures, acidity, and stability. Over the past two decades, innovations in synthesizing hierarchical zeolites have received continuous attention in both academia and industry for the potential to optimize catalytic performance of zeolite materials for in a wide range of refining and petrochemical applications that involve conversion of bulky molecules. The manipulation of hierarchy in zeolites can be achieved by different synthetic strategies that result in distinctive zeolites with various morphological, structural, and compositional characteristics. In this talk, we will discuss our recent progress on developing and optimizing hierarchical zeolites using top-down routes as well as bottom-up approaches with hard and soft templates and will summarize many of the unique underlying features for these different synthesis routes and their implications for large-scale industrial production of zeolites. We will also provide highlights on the utilization of these materials for important industrial applications related to oil refining and chemical productions.