Synthesis of biomorphic zeolite honeycomb monoliths with 16000 cells per square inch

Zeolite NaX and silicalite honeycomb monoliths were synthesized via hydrothermal growth of zeolites on the interior surface of cuttlebone by a novel flow coating technique. The resultant samples were characterized by SEM, XRD, EDX, N₂ adsorption and TGA. The loading of nano-crystalline silicalite (36.4 wt%) was higher than that obtained for NaX type zeolite. The biomorphic honeycomb monoliths were found to have an exceptionally high cell density of 16000 cells per square inch (cpsi) which is ten times higher than the best synthetic ones. The honeycombs were evaluated for their hydrodynamic and kinetic properties, showing substantial improvement of mass transfer rate with lower pressure drop than conventional zeolite packing.