Engineering in ceramic albite morphology by the addition of additives: Carbon nanotubes and graphene oxide for energy applications

Abstract

The synthesis of zeolite nanoparticles is studied comprehensively by adding an organic template as a reflux method, extracted from crystals. The zeolite nano-crystals are quite effectively synthesized by incorporating silica, organic template, and alkali metal. The tetrapropylammoniumhydroxide, tetrapropylammoniumbromide and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) as organic templates are added for the assistance of zeolite (albite) crystals. A cross-linker TEOS is also mixed. Adding carbon nanotubes and graphene oxide made the morphology of albite more interesting. Nucleation time is an important feature for the formation of albite crystals. The albite nano-shaped crystal is developed for instance when reaction time is less than 240 h, after this period crystal size increases with time. Batch 1 of zeolite is prepared with additives for testing its morphology, like surface area, particle size shape, and crystal geometry. The general trend (e.g., pore volume, percentage composition, particle size, geometry) of zeolite nano-crystal is explained by the help of robust techniques such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy.