A review on the fabrication of zeolite and mesoporous inorganic nanofibers formation for catalytic applications

Zeolites are microporous materials which are commonly used as catalysts in the petroleum refining industry. Due to increasing global demands for fuels and olefins, there has been a growing interest in synthesizing zeolites with better catalytic activity, selectivity, and lifetime. In this context, zeolite nanoparticles have been found to have higher catalytic activity as compared to their micro counterparts because of their greater surface area. Despite this advantage, zeolite nanoparticles have limitations in practical usage because of their unavoidable agglomeration. One approach to overcome this problem is to shape the zeolites in the nanofibers form. Among several reported routes to produce zeolite, nanofibers, electrospinning carries a unique significance because of several advantages. Herein, we review the existing literature on the fabrication of zeolites nanofibers using the electrospinning technique. Owing to the relatively novel nature of this approach, fabrication of other materials related to zeolites such as mesoporous materials is also included for comparison. This review also highlights some basic characterization, reported catalytic performance, challenges and strategies in fabricating zeolite nanofibers. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.