SYNTHESIS AND CHARACTERIZATION OF ZEOLITES FROM INDUSTRIAL WASTE MATERIALS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL APPLICATIONS

Date

2025-10-15

Author

Adam, Raghad Taha

Metadata

Show full item record

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Item Usage Stats

352
views

2
downloads

Cite This

Zeolites are important industrial materials known for their microporous crystalline structures, which make them highly valuable across various fields, including environmental remediation, petrochemical processing, and water treatment. This work presents a novel method for the sustainable synthesis of zeolites from industrial waste materials, aiming at valorizing such resources into functional, highperformance products. Zeolites play a unique and diverse role in environmental applications, and their global demand is expected to rise at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.8% by 2030, driven by their effectiveness in carbon capture, catalytic reactions, and filtration systems. The proposed synthesis method employs a green sol–gel-based hydrothermal approach, offering a cost-effective and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional techniques. The study is divided into two main parts: Synthesis and characterization. A multi-modal characterization strategy was employed, starting with Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) which assisted in confirming the presence of key vibrational modes characteristic of zeolite frameworks. Selected samples showing promising structural features were further analyzed using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDX). The results demonstrated successful zeolite Na synthesis under varying NaOH concentrations. SEM images revealed cubic crystal morphology, while EDX analysis confirmed a suitable Si/Al ratio almost 1 (0.86), indicating a high-alumina zeolite consistent with Na-A structure. These findings support the significance of the sol–gel method as a sustainable route for zeolite production, contributing to circular economy practices by utilizing industrial waste streams. Future work should explore studies focusing on assessing the adsorption capability of low-cost raw materials based zeolites and assess the capacity under different conditions for capturing CO2, NOX, and heavy metals in environmental applications.

Subject Keywords

Circular Economy, Green Chemistry, Hydrothermal Method, Sol-gel Synthesis, Zeolite Na-A

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11511/116184

Collections

Northern Cyprus Campus, Thesis