Titanosilicate-1 (TS-1) is a zeolite with the MFI structure where a small fraction of silicon has been substituted with titanium. TS-1 is an important material because it is a selective oxidative photocatalyst. In addition, under UV light carbon dioxide may be reduced to methanol, methane, and other light hydrocarbons. Previous work used TS-1 powders in photolysis studies but little attention has aimed at TS-1 films. This work will demonstrate that the fluoride route may be used to prepare TS-1 films. Due to films superior light penetration and well-defined active area compared to powders, they are important for fundamental studies and other potential applications. The TS-1 films were prepared from sol gels composed of tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS), tetrapropylammoniumhydroxide (TPA-OH), titanium tetrafluoride (TiF4) and hydrofluoric acid (HF). After hydrolysis of TEOS with TPAOH and the addition of TiF4 and HF, substrates (quartz, stainless steel) were immersed in the sol gel and placed into a Parr reactor, which was then heated to 150 oC for 24 hours. The resulting TS-1 films were polycrystalline and nearly continuous covering the substrate in a thin zeolite film.  The TS-1 films were characterized by grazing angle X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and FTIR spectroscopy. It was found that the TS-1 films are oriented with the b-axis normal to the substrate and that the Ti content is ~0.2 %. In this report, the synthesis and characterization of the TS-1 films and preliminary results on CO2 reduction will be presented.

Using titanosilicate (TS-1) zeolite to make light hydrocarbons from water and carbon dioxide

248th National Meeting (2014)

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