Preparation of amino functionalized hydrophobic zeolite and its adsorption properties for chromate and naphthalene

Abstract

Amino functionalized hydrophobic zeolite was prepared by modification of natural zeolite with 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane. X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared analysis, thermal gravimetric analysis, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface areas, and element analysis were employed to investigate the structures of the samples. The water vapor adsorption method was used to determine the hydrophobicity of the samples. The adsorption properties of the samples for chromate and naphthalene were then investigated. The results showed that the silane modification had a negligible effect on the crystalline structure of zeolite while significantly decreasing the specific surface area and increasing the hydrophobicity of the zeolite sample. The functionalized zeolite samples exhibit higher adsorption capacity and removal rate on chromate and naphthalene as compared with the unmodified zeolite sample due to their specific amino functional group and hydrophobicity property.