Preparation of hierarchical EU-1 zeolite via NH4F etching and the catalytic activity in cracking of n-hexane

One-dimensional microporous zeolite, EU-1, has tighter restriction for bulky intermediates, exhibiting more favorable selectivity of propylene than ZSM-5 in catalytic cracking. However, the diffusion limitation accelerates coke generation, passivates acid sites and deactivates the zeolite. In this study, a strategy was proposed to etch amorphous species between EU-1 nanocrystals using NH4F solution to improve the diffusion property. It was found that the etching process occurred on the crystal surface and mesopores were introduced. Catalytic performance evaluation in n-hexane cracking demonstrated that the maximum propylene selectivity over parent EU-1 was 33.6 wt% (vs. 5.7 wt% for ZSM-5). The n-hexane conversion was increased by 24 wt% over EU-1 etched in 20 wt% NH4F solution. Moreover, the introduction of mesopores provides accommodation space for coke. This study developed hierarchical EU-1 zeolite with favorable diffusion ability and reported a feasible strategy to improve the catalytic performance of EU-1 for propylene production.