Interaction of Microwaves with Synthetic Type A Zeolite Containing Water

Abstract

A synthetic honeycomb type A zeolite adsorbent was regenerated through microwave irradiation in a single-mode cavity microwave at 2.46 GHz. The regeneration mechanism was investigated by comparing the heating properties, thermogravimetric properties, and dielectric properties of the synthetic zeolite samples. The hydrated zeolite sample was easily heated to over 200 °C, although a difference in the impedance matching frequency of only 0.01 GHz sharply reduced the maximum heating and increased the regeneration time. The adsorbed water in the hydrated zeolite initially acted as a heating agent by absorbing microwave energy, because the dielectric loss factor of water is higher than that of synthetic zeolite around 2.45 GHz. From 50 to 250 °C, the zeolite itself also absorbed microwave energy.