Origin of Morphology Change and Effect of Crystallization Time and Si/Al Ratio during Synthesis of Zeolite ZSM-5

Hydrothermal synthesis of ZSM-5 is an often applied but incompletely understood procedure. In comparison to current research efforts that aim to produce complex micro-mesoporous catalysts for the conversion of biogenic and bulky hydrocarbons, this work focuses on the dependency between Si/Al ratio and zeolite morphology of microporous ZSM-5 to understand and to control the synthesis process. In two series of time dependent crystallization, kinetics were analyzed at Si/Al ratio 20 and 100 to optimize the crystallization time. Subsequently, zeolites with different Si/Al ratio were obtained and characterized. The results show a transition from a slow dissolution-recrystallization process to a fast solid-state-transformation with increasing Si/Al ratio. This is followed by a switching morphology from clusters of small agglomerates to bigger spherical particles. Respective acid site density and zeolite morphology determine local residence time, hydride transfer behavior and finally selectivity towards aromatics and higher hydrocarbons during methanol conversion. This background should provide control of even more complex syntheses of porous catalysts.