The synthesis of nano-sized ZSM-5 zeolite by dry gel conversion method and investigating the effects of experimental parameters by Taguchi experimental design

In this study ZSM-5 Nano particles with high crystallinity were synthesized using a dry gel conversion technique. An L9 orthogonal array of the Taguchi method was applied to investigate the effect of synthesis parameters, such as crystallization time, gel drying temperature, molar composition of template (TPAOH) and water content in the crystallization stage on crystallinity and particle size of the ZSM-5 catalyst. The products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Beside short crystallization time, the particle sizes were considerably smaller in comparison with those prepared using the hydrothermal method. The results showed that the particle size and crystallinity increased with increasing water content and crystallization time. The effects of gel drying temperature and molar composition of template were found to be more complex, however. Comparing to hydrothermal method, ZSM-5 samples synthesized with the dry gel conversion exhibited higher selectivity to gasoline than other hydrocarbons.