Obtaining of zeolite from phyllite and metakaolin

Synthetic zeolites have several advantages over the natural. Where this synthetic material consists in having a uniform composition and high purity, thus presenting a better efficiency in thermal stability and pores with a more rigid structure that allows you an excellent efficiency as molecular sieves. In the processes of synthesis of these materials, the search for alternative sources of silicon and aluminum continues to stimulate research. Thus, this work aims at the use of natural raw materials such as kaolin waste and phyllite aiming to produce these zeolitic materials. The starting materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and spectroscopy, X-ray fluorescence (XRF); the phases formed as synthesis products were identified by XRD. Hydrothermal synthesis took place by mixing the raw materials in stoichiometrically calculated batches with NaOH (3M) at 90 °C and time of 6, 20, 24 and 48 hours. The results show the formation of zeolite A, demonstrating the raw materials be an efficient and low cost alternative to producing zeolite. (author)