Seed-Assisted Interzeolite Conversion Strategy for Fabricating Lewis Acid Sn-CHA Zeolites

Small-pore Lewis acid zeolites have been showing increasing potential in shape-selective reactions regarding small-molecule conversion. In this study, Sn-CHA with tunable framework Sn contents was facilely prepared via a fluoride-free, seed-assisted interzeolite conversion (IZC) pathway. Commercially available dealuminated USY functioned as the parent sample, and seeding played a vital role in accelerating the transformation process, promoting the target zeolite yield, and guiding the attached-growth pathway. Notably, a proto-zeolite phase with a semi-constructed pore structure was captured during the IZC process, which represents a crucial intermediate stage for developing the complete CHA structure and ensuring a well-defined Sn status. The detailed synthesis mechanism was explored in multiscale by a series of techniques. The obtained Sn-CHA and proto-Sn-CHA exhibited excellent catalytic performance in converting 1,3-dihydroxyacetone to methyl lactate. Proto-Sn-CHA was proven to be a highly effective glucose isomerization catalyst owing to its larger pore size and Lewis acidic nature.