Sonochemical Synthesis of Zeolite A from Metakaolinite in NaOH Solution

Sonochemical synthesis of zeolite A has been conducted by ultrasonic irradiation of mixtures of metakaolinite and NaOH solution. The hydrothermal synthesis at conventional synthesis conditions was undertaken to determine the sonochemical reliability. The enhancement of nucleation and crystallization rate of zeolite A was achieved by ultrasound. In the ultrasonic field, zeolite A once formed in the suspension has been converted into hydroxysodalite and losod as sonicating proceeded. Comparing the results with those of conventional methods, this heterogeneous reaction was particularly accelerated by ultrasound, leading to improved reactivity of solid reactant through intensive mixing. The use of ultrasound enables us to prepare well-dispersed fine zeolite A particles with mean particle size of around 1 μm. The cation exchange capacity values of the products increased as the synthesis reaction for zeolite A proceeded. The high solid concentration in the suspension, however, hindered the ultrasound from intense agitating, resulting in the decrease of zeolite A yield.