Synthesis and characterization of Zr incorporation into highly ordered mesostructured SBA-15 material and its performance for CO2 adsorption

Zr-SBA-15 materials have been successfully synthesized using the direct synthesis method in self generated acidic conditions. The diffuse reflectance UV-visible (DRUV-vis) spectra and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results revealed that most of the zirconium species could be incorporated into silica framework. No agglomeration of Zr species was detected in the silica framework and at the extra-framework. Nevertheless, the continuous diminution of BET surface area, total pore volume, and pore width with increase in Zr/Si molar ratios was distinctly observed, which resulted from the deposition of some tiny and well-dispersed Zr species at the inner pore walls and/or external surface areas. The Zr incorporation also resulted in the augmentation of the microporous characteristics of all materials. The CO2 adsorption measurement was performed under ambient conditions (25 degrees C and 1 bar) in order to meet the broad needs of industry and household. The largest amount of CO2 uptake was demonstrated by 0.03Zr-SBA-15 at around 0.68 mmol/g (29.92 mg/g). The CO2 adsorption capability of these materials correlated considerably with their textural properties, particularly microporous volume (V-Micro). (C) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.