Butene catalytic cracking to ethylene and propylene on mesoporous ZSM-5 by desilication

Mesopore ZSM-5 was prepared by alkali treatment of parent ZSM-5 zeolite and applied for butene catalytic cracking. The zeolite was treated in the NaOH solutions with different concentrations at 85 °C. XRD showed that the intrinsic MFI structure of ZSM-5 zeolite was preserved and corresponding crystallinity remained unchangeableness when ZSM-5 was treated with low concentration NaOH solutions. However, excessive NaOH led to the destruction of zeolite structure. The BET surface area increased obviously after desilication, and the N₂ adsorption/desorption curves indicated a number of mesopores generation. The experiment of butene catalytic cracking was carried out in a fixed-bed to investigate the influence of mesopores. The results showed that catalytic performances can be greatly improved through introducing the mesopores into parent ZSM-5 by alkali treatment. Highest yield of ethylene plus propylene were obtained when the treated concentration of NaOH solution is 0.1–0.2 M.