Ionothermal synthesis of molecular sieves

Abstract

The synthesis of molecular sieves in ionic liquid or deep eutectic solvent is termed ionothermal synthesis. It involves an ionic reaction environment with extremely low volatility, and thus, can avoid the safety risks of hydro/solvothermal reactions, and bring great convenience and flexibility to both the synthesis of molecular sieves and the study on their formation mechanisms. In this chapter, first introduced are the special physicochemical properties of ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents, and the distinctive opportunities brought by them to synthesize molecular sieves. A detailed methodological illustration of ionothermal synthesis technique is provided subsequently. The molecular sieves ionothermally synthesized are summarized by their features such as composition, structure, porosity and morphology. Then follows a review on the fascinating structure-directing effect of various guest species in ionothermal synthesis. Finally, a prospect is given on the future development of ionothermal synthesis.