Fabrication of hydrophilic and durable Beta zeolite membranes for dehydration of fuel n-butanol by adjusting Al spatial distribution

Highly hydrophilic and durable Beta zeolite membranes with high aluminum (Al) spatial distribution were synthesized on inexpensive α-alumina supports via an organic template-free synthesis gel. In the absence of organic templates, the Al spatial distribution of Beta zeolite membrane crystal was regulated by the synthesis parameters such as the Al2O3/SiO2 ratio, alkalinity, H2O/SiO2 ratio and crystallization temperature, and the crystal morphology, Si/Al ratio and dehydration performance of the membrane could be further effectively controlled. Under optimal synthesis conditions, the prepared Beta zeolite membrane had an excellent separation factor of over 22,000 and a high permeation flux of 3.02 kg m−2 h−1 in the case of a 90 wt% n-butanol/water mixture at 75 °C. The high-performance Beta zeolite membrane was applied for continuous dehydration to obtain anhydrous n-butanol (99.9 wt%) from a 90 wt% n-butanol/water mixture. Furthermore, Beta zeolite membranes showed long-term acid stability in pervaporation dehydration of a 90 wt% n-butanol/water mixture with a pH value of approximately 2.0 at 75 °C for 192 h, indicating that these membranes by adjusting Al spatial distribution exhibited excellent hydrophilicity and acid resistance, which had a broad promising prospect of industrial applications for dehydration separation of acid-containing organic solvents.