Design of Cobalt–Amine Complex as an Efficient Structure-Directing Agent for One-Pot Synthesis of Co-SSZ-13 Zeolite
Shichao Han, Xiaomin Tang, Ye Ma, Qinming Wu, Jiaqi Shi, Jian Li, Xiangju Meng, Anmin Zheng, Feng‐Shou Xiao
Abstract
The selective catalytic reduction of nitrogen oxide with methane (CH4–SCR) has been considered as an alternative technology for the simultaneous removal of NOx and CH4, and one of the efficient catalysts for this reaction is Co-exchanged SSZ-13 (Co-SSZ-13) zeolite catalyst. However, the preparation of the Co-SSZ-13 zeolite catalyst is costly due to the use of an expensive organic template and Co exchange. We demonstrate here the design of a low-cost cobalt–amine complex (Co–DETA) as a novel structure-directing agent (SDA) for the one-pot synthesis of Co-SSZ-13 zeolite with the assistance of theoretical calculations. Physicochemical characterizations including X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, N2 sorption, and magic-angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance show that the Co-SSZ-13 zeolite has good crystallinity, a cubic morphology, a high surface area, and four-coordinated aluminum species. Furthermore, thermogravimetry–differential thermal analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and diffuse reflectance ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy confirm that the Co–DETA complex acts as a SDA for the synthesis of Co-SSZ-13 zeolite. More importantly, the Co-SSZ-13 zeolite exhibits good catalytic performance in the CH4–SCR reaction with 10% H2O in the feed gas stream. The efficient and facile synthesis of Co-SSZ-13 zeolite plus its good catalytic performance might offer a good opportunity for its industrial applications in the future.